The Region

Château des Roches is situated in Marigny Brizay, a village with a wine making traditions stretching back to the Middle Ages.

In the 12th century, winemaking here really prospered under Guillaume X, Duke of Aquitane, who did much to promote the planting of vines in the region. And through his daughter, Eleanor of Aquitane’s marriage to King Henry II of England, trade thrived and one can imagine wine from Marigny Brizay and the Haut Poitou being enjoyed by the royal court of England at that time. Caves dating back to this era are still being used by winemakers to this day.

The nineteenth century also saw a boom in winemaking, which had been disrupted in the intervening years by religious wars. The many stunning nineteenth century châteaux in the area stand as testament to this and lent Marigny-Brizay it’s nickname of “The Pauillac of the Vienne”.

However, disaster soon struck the area when in 1882 a blight of phylloxera, a vine eating insect wiped out the majority of vineyards in the region for several years.

Since that time, the wine industry has been rebuilding itself, with Château des Roches and its chai playing a major role in this….

The Château & Its Chai

As it stands, Château des Roches was built in the 19th century, but its origins date back to the 11th century.

Towards the end of the 1800s, the Château was owned by the President of the French Hybrid Vine Society, Mr Marot. Under his guidance, the vineyard became a prolific producer of hybrid vines at a time when the rest of the country was being ravaged by Phylloxera. The Château thus became one of the most important vineyards in the Vienne - acting not only as a wine producer but also as a vine nursery, supplying other farmers with hybrid vines.

The Château’s current story began in 1990 when Kate & Benji Meuli bought the house and began restoring it to its current beauty. They reunited the house with its vineyard in 2004 and joined forces with Ampelidae.

The Chai and its caves date back to 1893 but was completely redesigned by Ampelidae in 2005. The entire winemaking process for Ampelidae’s wines is carried out on site where over 100 hectares of vines are harvested each year.

The Wine

Ampelidae has produced organic contemporary wines in Marigny Brizay since 1995 and has been partnered with Château des Roches since 2004. Design, innovation and environmental impact are at the heart of Ampelidae. Visit the website by clicking the link below to find out more or better yet book a tasting and discover for yourselves…