Domaine de Lansac offers an ungrafted cuvée made from traditional Rhône Valley grape varieties

Domaine de Lansac offers an ungrafted (franc de pied) cuvée made from traditional Rhône Valley grape varieties. This cuvée is simply impressive in its power, balance and complexity. We have laid down a few bottles in the cellar. As a reminder, most French vines were grafted onto American rootstocks to provide resistance against phylloxera, which still poses a threat in vineyards today. So, you might ask, how is it possible to have ungrafted vines? There are two solutions: having terroirs with a near-total absence of clay (it is considered that below 3% clay there is no risk, that it increases beyond that, and that above 7% clay it is impossible to escape the threat of phylloxera). The second solution involves flooding the vineyards in winter to drown the insect. This is precisely what is done on these vines situated right beside the Rhône.