Château Bel-Air La Royère has belonged to the Chevrier family for 30 years.Corinne Chevrier and her family came to Château Bel-Air La Royère in 1992.
Coming from a long line of cognac producers, she has continued the family tradition of excellence in wine.
30 years is enough time for a generation, time to make a property grow, evolve and take root in its terroir, time to draw out its quintessence.
But respecting one’s roots, turning to organic farming, does not mean turning away from innovation! Spread over 14 hectares, the human scale of the château allows Corinne Chevrier to manage all the parameters while still combining research and development.
She knows how to make the most of the specific features of Bel-Air La Royère, with its mature vines which concentrate their sugars in the fruit.
She didn’t hesitate to introduce the Malbec grape variety, “Bordeaux’s illegitimate son“ as she calls it, either blending it with Merlot or seeking its pure expression as a varietal wine. These wines are benchmarks for the appellation: elegant and distinguished, and accurate expressions of both the terroir and the passion of the person who cultivates it.
In 1992, the Chevrier family, fourth-generation winemakers, fell in love with this old property in the Gironde. After considerable efforts to restore the vineyard, they created a refined, smooth, and silky wine, establishing themselves as a reference for the BLAYE-CÔTES-DE-BORDEAUX appellation with Bel-Air La Royère.
With my team, we strive to reveal the natural expression of our grapes.
The Malbec grape variety is “Bordeaux’s illegitimate son“. In 1995 it regained its former nobility at Château Bel-Air La Royère.
Innovating, creating, while constantly respecting the terroir, has always been the winegrowers’ task.
Corinne Chevrier understood this and applied this very same principle to the Malbec grape variety.
In the 19th century, this variety accounted for 80% of Bordeaux’s vines* before it lost ground to other varieties. Today it is gradually coming back to flourish on clay-limestone soils, offering up its notes of red fruit and chocolate, either alone or blended with Merlot.
Malbec is thought to be a cross between the “Magdeleine” and the “Prunelard Noir” varieties and comes from the Charentes region, like Corinne Chevrier herself.
Malbec (or Côt), which has recently regained its reputation thanks to passionate winemakers like Corinne, enhances vintages with spicy notes, deep nuances, and great finesse.
Basically, our timeline can be summarized as follows :
Since 1992,
quality has been the only objective
Corinne Chevrier, with her predominantly feminine team, wants her terroir to express itself.
Corinne Chevrier
The stylist
Angélique Touttard
The dresser
Victor Carvalho
The pruner who takes care of the vineyard and brings balance to this team of women
Nadège kouchnereff
The seamstress
In the middle of our rows of vines, under an oak tree, in summer, we welcome the yoga teacher Marie-Aline Boisvert. She offers sessions on Kundalini “yoga of consciousness“ which is a bodily practice based on breathing (paranayama), sound (mastras), integrating relaxation and meditation.
Open to all, from beginners to experienced.
Every Monday from 8.30 to 9.30 (July/August)
Adult : 15,00€ (incl. VAT) / pers(2 à 12 people)
Kid : 10,00€ (incl. VAT) / pers
Duration : 1 hour
Book on Instagram or by phone 06 18 47 79 44 or email malineboisvert@gmail.com
“It’s my wine, I made it myself !”
For 1.30 become an oenologist and make your own wine. After discovering the different grape varieties their different characteristics, their aromas, the length in the mouth, the tannin content…, and equipped with a technical data sheet, a test tube and an indispensable tasting glass, you will be able to make “your” wine, with blends that correspond to your own tastes: fruity, woody, tannic, aromatic and above all, you will leave with “your” own 75 cl bottle.
Every Tuesday from 10.00 to 11.30 am (July/August) or on request (groups of 4 people or more)
Price : €45 (incl. VAT) /pers. (4 to 10 people)
Duration : 1h30