Domaine Comte Abbatucci

Domaine Comte Abbatucci sits on granite-arena slopes in the Taravo valley of southern Corsica, at around 150 metres. The family has made wine here for over a century, but the estate's character was set in the 1960s when Antoine Abbatucci, watching Corsica's native grapes give way to international varieties, planted a one-hectare ampelographic collection to save eighteen of them from disappearing.

Jean-Charles Abbatucci took over from his father in 1992 and converted the estate to biodynamics in 2000, among the first in Corsica to do so. Twenty-one hectares are farmed without synthetic chemicals, with plant and mineral preparations, draught horses in place of tractors to avoid compacting the soil, and sheep grazing between the rows. His daughter Faustine now works alongside him — and gives her name to the Faustine wines.

The range runs to fourteen wines, all from traditional Corsican varieties: Sciaccarellu, Nielluccio and Barbarossa for the reds and roses, Vermentinu and rarer whites such as Biancu Gentile and Rossula Bianca.