Fourth generation from a family of vine-growers, Bernard Defaix started with 2 ha in 1959. From this period, a method to protect the vineyard against spring frost was discovered. Thanks to this, the vine-growers could be sure to have a minimum of harvest every year and so they began to develop stable trade markets.

The maintenance of the soils is made ploughing exclusively. We always make a winter ploughing, more or less deep according to the situations. We also try to earth some vines up as our parents and grand-parents used to do. It consists in digging a furrow in the middle of the row so as to bring back some earth at the base of the vine plant and make a little mound. The point of this work is to aerate the soil deeply and to bury the weeds. However, both earthing-up and de-earthing are delicate to do as they need good weather conditions. Moreover, in the sloping plots, it can increase the erosion. Then, during the season, the ploughing is being done at different times, according to the weeds sprouting.