During her 1st year of chemistry studies, Valérie Courreges realised that the nearby oenology campus looked much more appealing. Her childhood memories of making wine with her grandfather in Ossun, South West France, and the fact that the oenology students were having much more fun than the chemists led Valérie to a colourful and exciting career as a winemaker. Viña Los Vascos, Opus One, and her role as head winemaker for Chateau Fontainebleau were the "yeast" that fermented and strengthened Valerie's conviction that only biodynamic cultivation can result to wines of pureness and typicity. Today Valérie makes wine under her own labels, which are a playful reference to her convivial and rebellious nature. Valerie's domaine rests amongst the rolling hills on the outskirts of the sleepy town of Cotignac in the IGP VAR and AOP Côtes de Provence appellations. It is composed of 15 ha of single-vineyard plots of Grenache, Cinsault, Rolle (Vermentino) and Syrah from 40+-year-old vines. The soils are a mixture of clay and limestone and are rich in iron, which gives real structure to the wines. While the clay and limestone impart minerality, freshness and texture.