Les Vignerons d’Estézargues

The history behind Les Vignerons d’Estézargues dates to 1965, when winemakers near the small town of Estézargues in southern Rhône near Avignon joined forces to form a cooperative. In 1989, one of the pioneers of natural wine, Jean-François Nicq (later founder of Les Foulards Rouges) took over the management and convinced the cooperative with ten different farmers to focus more on quality.

From 1995 they began to vinify the grape must from their best vineyards individually, and since 1998 they have worked without cultured yeast, enzymes, fining or filtration, and only with an absolute minimal addition of sulphur. Changing managements have continued in these tracks, and Les Vignerons d’Estézargues today stands as a shining example of one of France’s most well-run cooperatives.