At Val Joanis, we are a family, and we are determined to preserve our ancestral values, adapting them to modern techniques provided these do not conflict with nature.
We are concerned to protect our environment and to leave more to future generations than we ourselves received.
Because we respect our land, we strive to improve it by our methods of cultivation.
We accept that our yields are well below the general average.
So we practise a sustainable system of agriculture, rejecting any kind of chemical manuring.
Mineral fertilizers are not used, and in their place we apply organic supplements of vegetable origin.
Erosion is controlled by systematically sowing the vineyard with ground covering plants, and spraying is limited to the bare essentials.
On this estate of 400 unbroken hectares, the vineyard occupies 186 hectares.
Only 60 hectares are given over to the AOC production of Château Val Joanis.
During the Quaternary Era, erosion phenomena caused the appearance of broad deposits of limestone and gravel, forming an exceptionally favourable soil.
Discover a map of the region The vineyard spreads over the hills, at altitudes from 280 metres to 499 metres at its highest point, the site of the plot know as Les Griottes.(photo)
Estate
Located in the South East of Vaucluse, the Luberon took form on the piece of emerging land, which at the secondary era was shaped as an isthmus between the "fosse vocontienne" (alps sea) and the Mediterranean.
Soil Three gealogical regions can be located:
The region of Apt, synclinal zone where limestone and marly stratum alternate.
The mountains of the Luberon, of Limestone stratum where erosion shows layers of calcareous clay.
The region of Aigues mainly composed of sands of miocène and molasses from the region of Cucuron.
Val-Joanis is situated in the west part of the south Luberon where limestone rocks reappear.
Climate
With a Mediterranean character and the affluence of a continental climate, originating in the Alps and the Rhône Valley, the Luberon enjoys 2600 hours of sun a year. The proximity of the Durance creates a micro-climate which protects the vineyards from early spring frosts.
( Geological profile )