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Domaine Houchart is today owned by Geneviève, the wife of Jérôme Quiot, having been originally acquired by her grandfather. During the period the 1850's, Aurélien Houchart was an energic proprietor and negociant in wine, and created one of the largest domaines in Provence.
Subsequently his Domaine was divided between his five children, with Hilaire Houchart, Geneviève Quiot's grandfather inheriting 50 hectares of vines, the cellars and agricultural buildings.
Today, Domaine Houchart still has the 50 hectares of vines, situated at Puyloubier, at the foot of the famed montagne Sainte Victoire, 25 kms east of Aix-en-Provence. Since 1984, these wines have been commercialized by Vignobles Jérôme Quiot.
Domaine Houchart produces about 240 000 bottles (20 000 cases) of Côtes de Provence and 18 000 bottles (1 500 cases) of Vin de Pays
The grape varieties used are those traditional to Provence and balanced to give the best possible results with ages of 30 to 50 years : Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignan and Mourvèdre for red Côtes de Provence varieties and Clairette and Rolle for white and Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah vines for Vin de Pays.
The vines are left to trail on the ground in the traditional "gobelet" fashion, other than the Syrah and young vines which are trained on wires.
Because of the size of the domain, 50 hectares, it is possible to take advantages of a wide variety of soil types, with predominantly sandy, chalky soil and deeper beds of clay and silt. This allows adequate drainage of rainfall and ensures the vines are able to produce the best possible quality. More over, the terroir of this part of the Appellation Côtes de Provence has an historical reputation for the production of high quality wines with a great ageing potential.
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