SILEX d’Orfeuilles is a dry wine produced from old vines planted on a fully south‑facing slope. This exceptional Vouvray terroir is covered with large silex stones over clay‑limestone soil. This unique setting gives the wine deep minerality and the famous “flinty” character. The harvest is pressed for 2 to 3 hours. After settling, the must is vinified half in tanks and half in 500‑liter oak barrels, 25% of which are new. Fermentation occurs naturally without added yeasts, followed by eleven months of aging on fine lees with regular bâtonnage. The wine is bottled in September after racking, blending, and fine filtration.

Winemaking

VOUVRAY MOELLEUX is produced from hand‑harvested grapes through successive selective passes, choosing bunches affected by noble rot. After gentle pneumatic pressing for 6–7 hours, the highly sugar‑concentrated must is settled and then transferred into oak barrels for a long, temperature‑controlled fermentation. This fermentation is entirely spontaneous, with no addition of selected yeasts. Bottling begins in the spring following the harvest, after several months of aging, a single racking, and fine tangential filtration.

Tasting notes

A bright straw‑gold color with slightly golden reflections and fine legs. The nose is complex and very intense, revealing aromas of candied mirabelle plum, tea, quince, and prune. The palate is powerful and voluminous, with good length, a slight bitterness on the finish, and a return of quince and freshness.

Serving temperature: 8–10°C. Cellaring potential: 50 years or more under proper storage conditions.