Guy Rochais hands the keys of Château de Plaisance to Vannessa Cherruau

hâteau de Plaisance with its 25-hectare vineyard in Rochefort-sur-Loire (Anjou) is making an incredible come-back according to its new co-owner, Vanessa Cherruau. A graduate of the Angers School of Agriculture, she took over the property last September with the investor Emmanuel Lemaire (via his holding company LMR) and admits that only 16 hectares are currently bearing. “45,000 vines need replanting and worn-out equipment needs renewing. That’s the problem when there is no buyer – investments dry up”, summarised Vanessa Cherruau.

Put on the market several years ago by the Logeais family, no buyers came forward to purchase Château de Plaisance. Its owners, “Guy and Patricia Rochais, were morally exhausted and no longer had the strength to continue. If they had not found a buyer, they would have sold the property to the CAPL co-operative winery (Coopérative Agricole du Pays de Loire, whose marketing branch is Loire Propriétés)”, explained Cherruau. For Loire Propriétés, the purchase would have added to recent investments in Angers, most notably Domaine du Landreau (Coteaux du Layon) and Château Bellerive (Quarts de Chaume).

Chenin enthusiast

Now firmly in the saddle at Château de Plaisance, Vanessa Cherruau has established a ten-year programme to restructure her vineyard, renew her equipment and re-launch her wines commercially under the Coteaux du Layon Chaume Premier Cru, Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru, Savennières and Anjou-Villages white and red appellations. In 2018, the property sold its must and grapes to trading firms, though its customer base is mostly private clients. Focusing on Chenin Blanc, Vanessa Cherruau intends to take advantage of the estate's experience in organic and biodynamic farming, which have been certified since 1995 and 2008 respectively.