François Villard
The story of a self-made winegrower starts here.
Primary Apelation: Condrieu, Saint-Joseph, Côte-Rôtie, Cronas, Crozes-Hermitage
Winemaker Name: François Villard
Varietals: Tempranillo, Graciano, Mazuelo
WINERY OVERVIEW
Domaine François Villard is one of the stars of the northern Rhône. He came to winegrowing after a career in restaurants, where he caught the wine bug and moved from chef to sommelier. François hung up his apron to become a full time winegrower in 1991. Entirely self taught, his domaine continues to grow, as has the range he offers. Today, François owns and sources from 40 hectares of Viognier vines in the Northern Rhône and 7.5 hectares in Condrieu, from which he makes five impressive cuvées. Domaine François Villard is the story of a self-made man. His name is now a reference point for world-class Condrieu thanks to his hard work, vision and skill.
François Villard was also one of the three winemakers involved with the Vins de Vienne project, who planted vines on the wrong side of the Rhône in Seyssuel, which has a Côte-Rôtie-like terroir and had been planted in ancient times. These wines are lovely, having moved away from the modernist, new-oak-heavy style that he used to flirt with in the past and has moved to less extractive winemaking and using more whole cluster.
'For me it is important to get some energy in the mouth,' says Villard, 'We stopped punchdowns five years ago. We use short cuvasions. I disagree that short cuvaisons are for early drinking wines.'
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