THE VITI FARM AT THE DOMAINE LANYE-BARRAC

With no winemaking family tradition, Mélanie, an osteopath in Corsica, and Bernhard, a sommelier in Australia, created their wine farm in 2012. Today, their estate extends over 27 hectares. What's so special about it? Their vines are tended by animals during the winter period: their sheep eat grass and shrubs on the sloping ground of the property, the donkeys delight in the tender ends of the branches and thus pre-prune the vines; the cows maintain the grass and fertilize the soil; ducks and chickens eliminate insect pests and snails that damage the leaves during and after vine budburst; finally, Gascon black pigs turn and plough the soil, slowing down weed regrowth and reducing the vine's water competitiveness. The result: flora, fauna, minerals and humans interact in the vineyard, just like in the cellar!