Winegrower Côtes du Rhône
Patrick Coste took over the family estate and decided to become an independent winegrower. A new sense given to his professional life, already crowned with success by the interest shown for his Châteauneuf-du-Pape and Côtes du Rhône wines by eminent sommeliers.“We are writing the history of our estate now!” Aware that his domain does not yet have a past, Patrick Coste is resolutely looking towards the future. At the age of just thirty, he decided to reconsider the way in which up until now Henri, his grandfather, and Maurice, his father, dealt with vine growing. “I was keen to take over the management of the estate, but I no longer wanted to work with the cooperative system. I could not accept the idea of working on my crops for a whole year to then see them mixed with others after harvesting...”
Former Vice-President and President of the Courthezon Cooperative Cellar, Maurice Coste reassured his son that he had made the right decision. “There was a time when the cooperative system presented plenty of advantages. It limited personal investment and ensured sales. But ideas have changed and when I see how wine production has changed, I think he has made the right choice to work under his own steam.”
The very first harvest of this new domain of 26 hectares (6 hectares in the Châteauneuf-du-Pape appellation, 10 in the Côtes du Rhône appellation and 10 in Vin de Pays) went into vats in 2004. “We produced 1400 hectolitres in total and had the satisfaction of winning our first medals in Orange. But starting from scratch as we did meant that we had to constitute our first stock, also work on selling this vintage, which is not a habitual method in Châteauneuf and build up some funds too, because we had more or less invested everything in buying our machinery and equipment: the total sum of 350000 Euros.”
The young couple hedged their bets on the quality of their wines and the relations they had formed with customers in order to succeed in creating an image for the Domaine Le Pointu. The name of the estate raises an obvious question. “Le Pointu is the name of one of our vineyard plots planted with white grapes; it is located on a hillside near the wood of Château Rayas.” In a choice area, the plateau is also covered with worn pebbles, where the Grenache Noir and Cinsault Noir varieties flourish. “Here, we border the vines of Beaucastel and when a neighbour is as renowned as that, we cannot fail to make excellent wine ourselves.”
In Foodex Japon, the president of the ASI Kazuyoshi Kogai discovered
Patrick Coste's wines.
Patrick Coste chose the breeding in barrels of Bordeaux as the most
prestigious of his wines. The next construction of a wine storehouse
of ageing is going to simplify his(her) organization.
As remarkable as they are, it is still necessary to carry out communication for these wines and position them in an extremely competitive market. “As of the 2005 vintage, with the quality of the harvest anticipated, I carried out a selection of certain plots. The medals we received were a sign of encouragement for us. But considering the difficult situation concerning wine consumption in France, I decided to give priority to markets abroad. With the assistance of the COFACE, I established a strategy for targeting markets efficiently, so we were able to take our first steps towards selling to China and Japan.”
The land of the Rising Sun was indeed the first to discover the wines of Domaine Le Pointu. A stroke of luck and a great deal of sincerity in their discussions effectively enabled Karine and Patrick Coste to secure a contract for producing personalised gift box sets for a leading Japanese cosmetics company, which works with the hotel industry. “Two years passed between our first contacts and the project actually being carried out. We understood that it was all a matter of patience!”
This impression was confirmed during professional exhibitions. Vinexpo Asia-Pacific in 2006 and Foodex in 2007 held in Japan are just beginning to produce results now. A container-load of wine headed for Shanghai right at the beginning of 2009.
The wines of this enterprising couple have also been exported to Russia and Estonia. “At present we are taking things very carefully. But in no way do I regret having made this choice, even though I am aware that it requires investing a great deal of time and money in sales strategies. The proof that I believe in what we are accomplishing is that we are now working with countries where our wines are barely present, but have real future potential, such as India or Vietnam.”
To secure first-class markets in France and for export to emerging countries with Vins de Pays, Patrick Coste has chosen to rely upon the recommendations and experience of Christian Prud’Homme. He is a consultant, particularly for some of the most reputed estates in the Bordeaux region and decided to become involved in the venture of this domain. “He has enabled us to progress more rapidly with the maturation of our wines and his experience has undoubtedly allowed us to gain five years in the choice of our barrels. They are all Bordeaux barrels and thanks to Christian, we have got them just at the right time.”
Patrick Coste’s methods for vine growing and winemaking are as natural as possible. “We coordinate our work by taking into account weather conditions and the various stages of the moon.”
As for projects, they are already clear in Patrick’s mind. First the construction of a small reception cellar with a view into the future barrel storehouse, which is to cover an area of 400m²; in 2009, the production of cuvee Mathieu, the name of his youngest son, which will follow on from cuvee Clément (his eldest son). “And since we have great confidence in the Japanese market, we are going to produce a Réserve wine for the 150th anniversary of Franco-Japanese relations.”
Combining quality with unusual sales strategies...this is the trademark of a domain that has already begun to write its history.
Domaine le Pointu
255, chemin de la Grande Allée
84350 Courthézon
Tél./fax : 04 90 51 03 62
www.domaine-le-pointu.com
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