Les Raisins Suspendus

In 2020, Angela Weidner and Maxime Aerts, having recently assembled in 2018 three hectares of vines in the forested hills near the village of Saint-Alexandre in the Gard region of the Southern Rhone, began to explore a new terroir, the Hautes-Alpes, to create a second domaine, Les Raisins Suspendus.

For mountain lovers Maxime and Angela, it was above all the climatic conditions and geological profile of the region that won them over, where they could create wines that reflect their personality.

They embarked on the challenge to restore plots of vines, most of which are centuries old and abandoned by their owners, life-long Hautes-Alpes residents who until recently cultivated their plots to make their own wine. While trying to identify all the grape varieties present in these planted vines, Maxime and Angela are also working on more recent plots, with some rather surprising mountain Chardonnays and Merlots.

Nestled between 800 and 1000 metres above sea level, on hillsides overlooking the Durance, these plots are made up of mainly limestone soils, composed of marl and alluvium inherited from the last great glaciation.

Considering the vineyards as a fully-fledged, living ecosystem, they work organically, making grass their ally, harvesting the grapes by hand, and making wine without artifice.

In 2022 and 2023, they planted 1.5 hectares of vines in Embrun on the slopes of the Durance with a selection of native grape varieties, including Mollard, or those from neighboring Alpine regions, such as Petite Arvine and Mondeuse Blanche.