In 1952, under the initiative of Alexandre Bergouignan, Désiré Etcheverry-Ainchart and Pierre Minjonnet, nine passionate winegrowers decided to form a cooperative to promote the development of their production. This was the founding act that gave birth to today’s structure. In 1970, Irouléguy wines were granted AOC status. The Cave d’Irouléguy represents 60% of the appellation’s planted areas, i.e. 130 hectares to date.
Ethics and values
Cooperative winegrowers supply Cave d’Irouléguy with their entire production, renouncing any individual marketing. For the consumer, this guarantees the highest level of quality and consistency in Cave d’Irouléguy wines. This ethic of quality and a job well done drives our 32 AOC winegrowers associated with the cooperative. It’s an ethic shared by the fifteen or so employees whose dynamism and entrepreneurial spirit are driving the ever-growing success of Cave d’Irouléguy wines, both in France and on foreign markets. By creating value, Cave d’Irouléguy helps to sustain small farms in the interior of the Basque Country, preserves jobs and economic activity in rural areas, and enhances the value of the region.
The Cave d’Irouleguy wished to enrich the classic mode of governance of a cooperative with participative democracy, through which winegrowers and employees exchange and debate within commissions on their trade, the improvement of their cultivation practices, the research and innovation to be taken into account to improve the quality of the wines and on the development of the range and commercial channels.
This cooperative spirit makes it possible to produce quality wines that result from hard work first in the vineyard, then in the cellar during vinification and ageing, and finally packaged and sold with care and respect for the customer.
So many winegrowers, so many terroirs: that’s what makes the mountain vineyards of Irouléguy so special. Many small plots on diverse terroirs (light soils on Triassic red sandstone, clay soils on Keuper ophite, limestone soils, schist soils, etc.).
The vineyards are located on the southern slopes of the Western Pyrenees at an altitude of between 200m and 400m. Two-thirds of the vines are planted on terraces, imposing a tradition of manual labour. The Irouléguy vineyards benefit from a microclimate marked by autumns of rare beauty and the influence of southerly winds, which predominate from September to the end of October. The red grape varieties are Tannat, Cabernet sauvignon and Cabernet franc, producing richly perfumed wines. The white grape varieties are Gros Manseng, Petit Manseng and Petit Courbu, which give the wines an intense, fresh expression with aromas of white flowers and exotic fruits.
The Winery’s wines have the vivacity, elegance and aromatic charm of mountain vines. The richness and diversity of the grape varieties make these wines, vintage after vintage, products of emotion and exaltation of the senses.