Why it matters
The producer
At the gates of Béziers, facing the Mediterranean Sea, Domaine la Colombette combines family stewardship with resistant grape varieties and reduced alcohol wines. The Pugibet family founded the estate in 1890, and four generations have carried it forward. The estate covers 320 hectares near Béziers.
The portfolio includes Chardonnay, Grenache, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Alongside these established grape varieties, the estate develops resistant varieties for pesticide free viticulture. Plume adds a separate line of reduced alcohol wines, giving the domaine a second focus alongside its vineyard programme.
Place and vineyards
Where the wines begin
Facing the Mediterranean Sea, Domaine la Colombette sits at the gates of Béziers in southern French wine country. Mediterranean settings generally bring strong sunlight and warm ripening conditions, so grape choice becomes one way to manage ripe fruit, freshness and alcohol in the finished wine.
The estate's documented range uses several grape varieties across different wine forms. Chardonnay appears as a white wine, Grenache as a rosé, and Syrah with Grenache as a red. Cabernet Noir adds a red made from a resistant variety.
In the cellar
Vineyards and cellar
Disease resistant varieties make up 80% of the plantings. The programme includes Fleurtai, an Italian hybrid created by crossing a vinifera grape with a non vinifera grape, and Muscaris.
The vineyards receive virtually no treatment. Small doses of sulphur are used on some of the most delicate plots. Resistant varieties reduce the need for chemical inputs and allow the estate to farm without pesticides across most of its plantings.
Wines to know
The range in view
The portfolio includes Chardonnay, Grenache, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, alongside wines made from resistant varieties. Plume is the estate's reduced alcohol range, introduced in 2009 after ten years of research into alcohol reduction.
The documented Plume wines include a 9% ABV red made from Syrah and Grenache, a 9% ABV Grenache rosé and a 9% ABV Chardonnay white. AU CREUX DU NID Cabernet Noir belongs to the resistant variety range and is farmed organically with zero pesticides.