Condrieu, Northern Rhône
At Clos de la Bonnette, gnarled vines are staked with traditional chestnut poles to tether them against the strong currents of the wind. Buffeted by a scorching summer, the vines drive roots deep into the granite. It took centuries of thirsty work to build these dry-stone terraces, using stones dug out of the hillside with a mattock. Domaine Clos de la Bonnette was purchased in 1992 by wife and husband team, Isabelle Guiller and Henri Montabonnet. The Guiller-Montabonnet family, who had grown organic fruits and vegetables since 1970, finds their place in this labor of devotion, as they worked to rescue overgrown vineyards from oblivion. Their philosophy of terroir includes the arts of the Rhône, and their farm life always is blessed by the voices of Rhône poets, musicians, and artists, from the present as well as the past.