This 19-hectare estate that has been in the hands of the Paccot family for four generations is situated in the tiny village of Féchy, in the Swiss department of the Vaud, where vines have been growing on the gentle slopes rolling down to Lake Geneva for a thousand years or more. Féchy, 490 metres altitude, 200 hectares of vines mainly planted with Chasselas. Diverse soils, ranging from limestone, sand and loam, to clay. The climate is influenced by the proximity of Lake Geneva, the Alps and the Jura mountains, providing all the necessary conditions for the production of wines of great quality. At Domaine La Colombe the soils are maintained without any use of chemical herbicides in order to maintain the microbial life of the earth. The grape skins are composted, mixed with manure and left for a year before being spread in the vines. Insecticides have also been banished. The products used to protect the vines are simply Bordeaux mixture, sulphur and biodynamic preparations and infusions of plants such as nettle, horsetail and yarrow. Biodynamic methods, introduced progressively since 1999, are used today across the entire vineyard. This method of cultivation that respects the soil, natural rhythms, the plants and human life, enables each of the wines and their terroirs to give of their full expression. The majority of the wines are Demeter certified. Domaine La Colombe crafts wines with a sense of place, anchored in the nature of the soils, the choice of grape varieties and their methods of winemaking. Highly expressive wines of emotion, nuance and delicacy that are imprinted with the terroir. The Paccot family are constantly experimenting, with a permanent desire to progress whilst concentrating firmly on essential values. They have well understood the importance of the terroir and the best way to harness it to give better grapes, better wines, with full respect for nature. It’s not simply a question of employing a technique to control life and produce better wines. On the contrary, it’s about being inspired by and having faith in the dynamics of life, about learning to live! Raymond Paccot was elected “Icon of Swiss Wine” in 2019 by Gault & Millau for his extraordinary contribution to the world of wine. He is, and will remain, a model for generations of winemakers to come, starting with his talented daughter, Laura, who in January of the same year assumed responsibility for the estate in total complicity and perfect accord with Raymond and his philosophy. With ambassadors of this calibre for its wines, there is no doubt that Chasselas will gain the noble status that it merits. Wine & Hospitality Projects is delighted to present four magnificent La Colombe wines, specially selected for our clients. The elegant cuvée Amédée (Savagnin) and the amazing Fechy aged in Foudre (Chasselas) for the whites, and Colombe Noire (a delicate, refined Pinot for laying down, made from 50-year-old vines), and Colombe Rouge (a distinctive blend of Gamaret, Merlot and Syrah aged in oak) for the reds.
