Pedres Blanques

Rié and Hirofumi Shoji are both from Japan but met at wine school in Beaune. Rié worked for Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier at the time, and Hiro has worked for Frédéric Cossard for many years. When the time came to set up a house for themselves, Roussillon became the obvious choice as the home for Pedres Blanques. Partly because it is still possible to buy vineyards that are affordable here, partly because the coastal climate with very strong winds from the Mediterranean decreases the risk of frost and diseases in the vineyards.

They have purchased 3.5 hectares of extremely steep and impassable vineyards at an altitude of 350 meters, located on the outer edge of the Collioure appellation. The vineyards are largely planted with Grenache Noir on a soil of granite and slate that give the grapes a tremendous freshness and acidity.

In the cellar, all the virtues from their time in Burgundy are in use: 100% whole clusters, spontaneous fermentation, long but very gentle extraction, storage in old casks, no use of pumps, no fining or filtration and absolutely no added sulphur. Pedres Blanques make serious and structured wines with huge potential for storage, but at the same time with an enormous lightness and elegance as a result of extremely insightful vineyard work and a very gentle vinification.