Le musée des Émile vignerons dans le domaine
Domaine
CASTAN
A WAY OF LIFE
When the ancestors of Monique et André, Emile Castan and Emile Caussanel
pruned their vines around 100 years ago, they surely had no idea
of what their grandchildren would undertake to enhance
these lands they loved so much.
Their wines are
moreish,
elegant and re
spectful.
GLOSSARY
Natura 2000
This network brings together natural or semi-
natural sites of the European Union which have
an important heritage value due to their
exceptional flora and fauna.
Something of a visionary, André Castan
quickly understood that the development
of his domaine would only be achieved
through the protection of its ecosystem,
understanding and accentuating the
land and opting for wine tourism. André
Castan’s adventure as an independent
winegrower began when he purchased a
historic building dating from 1887 in the
village of Cazouls-les-Béziers, between
Chinan and Béziers. Slowly, from 1993
onwards, he dug up, cleared away,
renovated, built and invested with pure
enthusiasm, particularly when his two
children, Valérie and Guilhem, took up the
baton alongside their parents.
All nature lovers, he brought the whole
family on board a few years ago, opting for
a high environmental value approach and
today all the plots have been converted to
organic farming. With the Castans, “the
quality of nature and the soil is an ethical
issue, a way of life”, and this philosophy
guides their day-to-day choices and work.
When André plants forests of pine and
olive trees (the oil produced at the
domaine is also being converted to
organic production) it is to create a mini-
farms for insects so that the vines are
naturally protected against the invasion of
parasites. As Valérie explains, “is it part of
her father’s DNA”.
When you go to the Castans, prepare
yourself for a journey into the history of
viticulture. First comes the present day
activities of the domaine, with a winery
shop where you can appreciate the
estate’s 17 vintages in white, rosé and
red with, of course, explanations about
everything from the preparation of the soil
to the harvest, the vinification process and
bottling, because everything is done on
site, with modern and efficient equipment.
38
Then the “Emile Winegrowers Museum”, a
look at the history of winegrowing spread
over 600m2, where all objects on display
have been found by André over the years
and the museology has been carefully
thought out by Valérie. Even the models
are “made in Castan”, as it is Monique
who created them, while Guilhelm, the
alchemist of the house, manages the
work of vineyard and the creation of the
domaine’s wines.
His latest magic potion, “l’ enaurada”,
a superb Saint Chinian AOC, is Valérie’s
favourite vintage. “In Occitan, Enaurada
means ‘in flight’”. This vintage comes
from an exceptional plot in the domaine,
classified as a Natura 2000 zone, as
Bonelli eagles, a Mediterranean species,
nest there.
L’Enaurada is both the symbol of the flight
of these magnificent eagles but also of
this young winemaker who continues the
family tradition.
26 BIS AVENUE JEAN JAURÈS - 34370 CAZOULS-LÈS-BÉZIERS
04 67 93 54 45 - domainecastan.com
Domaine Castan
Winery shop open year round from Monday to Saturday
(except public holidays).
LE VIEUX PUITS
This gourmet stop between the coast
and inland will delight you with its
home cooking inspired by the terroir.
All dishes are created with fresh and
seasonal produce and menus are
created and customised according to
tastes and preference. In this warm
atmosphere you’ll also be able to
sample a selection of local regional
wines.
207, avenue de Cazouls – 34370 Maraussan
04 67 90 05 59 - restaurant-levieuxpuits.com
Restaurant le vieux puits