Sn the road that winds between Saint-Florent and the Col de Teghime, the luxuriant vineyard of Patrimonio (Haute-Corse) stretches out on the hillsides over nearly 500 hectares lulled by the spray of the Mediterranean. Its mosaic of small estates, a symbol of peasant agriculture that resists the temptation of gigantism, gives the oldest protected designation of origin (PDO) on the island, founded in 1968, a singular identity on the scale of island viticulture. From the 2022 vintage, the clay soils of this little Eden which brings together around forty independent cellars at the foot of Cap Corse will have another particularity: they will now have to be worked mechanically, whether for old vines or young plantations. .
Unanimously, the producers of the AOP have chosen to include in their specifications the prohibition of synthetic chemical weedkillers, including the very controversial glyphosate, declared “probable carcinogen” by the World Health Organization. “Almost all of the winegrowers were already in this eco-responsible approach, says Mathieu Marfisi, president of the AOP. We wanted to give it a formal framework so that the new facilities comply with this measure which is more respectful of the environment and faithful to the idea we have of our appellation. »
A “political message”
Fifth generation of the estate of the same name, Mathieu Marfisi wants to be the guarantor of a process of conversion to organic farming of this flagship vineyard of the island, cultivated since Antiquity and classified as a Grand Site de France. The president of the AOP does not hide the “political message” which shines through through this initiative, while the ban on glyphosate is slow to be put in place in France. The bill of November 30, 2021 has still not been voted on and the current authorization of the pesticide, which expires at the end of 2022, is the subject of a review at European level. From this point of view, the Patrimonio appellation is a pioneer across the country.
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According to the National Institute of Origin and Quality (INAO), the establishment in charge of the certification of organic products, only three appellations – Pomerol, Baux-de-Provence and Patrimonio – have officially banned chemical weeding from their vineyards. , out of the 363 PDOs in the country. Young winemaker settled in Patrimonio since 2016, Lionel Wojcik began this transition more than a year ago in his eight-hectare estate. “Mechanical or manual weeding is a demanding job, but so much healthier for the environment,” he believes. This is also part of a trend that is more respectful of biodiversity, which corresponds to consumer expectations. »
“A search for authenticity”
Until now, only seven growers were still using chemical weed control in the Patrimonio vineyard. Others took this turn a long time ago. At the Giudicelli estate, which extends over ten hectares of clay-limestone soil in the hinterland of Saint-Florent, the vines have never known chemistry. Since 1997, Muriel Giudicelli has cultivated her rows biodynamically without any synthetic product. ” Our approach has been guided from the start by the search for authenticity, explains the winegrower. We want to give our wines an identity that resembles us, and this requires the conservation of living soil, protected from all the substances that impoverish our lands and mortgage their future. »
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Crucible of a movement of natural wine which is now spreading to the four corners of the island, the oldest Corsican appellation thus intends to show the way to a virtuous viticulture which is moving towards “all organic”. Beyond the management of the grassing of the soil without pesticides, the AOP Patrimonio also plans to ban synthetic products in the treatment of the vine, as well as chemical fertilizers. “With regard to climatology in particular, it is undoubtedly easier for us than elsewhere to produce organically, considers Mathieu Marfisi. To date, three quarters of the domains of the appellation are already certified in organic farming and do not use any chemical inputs. We have the potential to move towards 100% organic. »