Chateau De Parnay Saumur Champigny Organic 0.75 ltr 13%

Antoine Cristal, born in 1837, bought the château and its vineyards at the end of the 19th century. He had already made his fortune as a businessman and wanted to pursue his lifelong dream of becoming a winemaker, which would earn him his fame. From that moment on, he dedicated his life to the vineyards: he was always hard at work, experimenting, innovating, and investing to improve the quality of the vineyards and the wines.

The early years were certainly not easy, as phylloxera ravaged the vineyards. Cristal was one of the first to successfully graft American vines onto French grape varieties, and in this way, he rebuilt the vineyards. He was also one of the first to use wires to train the vines and built his own machinery to cultivate the vineyards. All this investment and effort eventually earned him great fame, success, and numerous awards.

One of the plots, "le Clos d'Entre les Murs," has been uniquely designed by Cristal. Not only is the vineyard walled, but eleven 2-meter-high walls are built throughout the entire vineyard. The walls run east to west, allowing the vines on the north side to root on the shaded side of the wall, where it is pleasantly cool and moist. The vines are guided through the walls to the sunny south side, allowing the Chenin grapes to ripen beautifully in the sun. This plot was classified as a historical monument in 2011.

After Antoine Cristal died in 1931, the estate gradually fell into disrepair. In 2006, it was purchased by current owner Régis Vincenot, also the owner of Château Princé and Champagne House Vincenot. He has used his knowledge and expertise to restore Antoine Cristal's work to its former glory and now produces beautiful, organically certified wines.