Wine and whimsy at the Vignoble Les Farfelus
The vineyard is over a decade old, but the owners—dominic Belleville and Hélène Germain—are new and so are the wines they have already started producing.
“We bought the property 18 months ago,” says Dominic of the small vineyard on the Arel Road, a few hundred yards and across Route 116 from the Richmond-melbourne Cross-country Skiing Centre.
“Aside from having always enjoyed wine, we had no prior experience, either with growing grapes, or any sort of gardening for that matter, nor with the fermentation and production of wine,” he explains. “But before embarking on our project, we sought professional advice from agronomists, technicians, and experts connected in some way with oenophilia.”
A counsellor in labor relations, Dominic has worked as a union consultant for the last two decades and continues to do so. The move from Montreal to the Townships was the result of a desire to get back to the land, and it came after several years of planning.
“Originally,” he says, “we were thinking of going into business with fruit-bearing shrubs like blueberries, or gooseberries, or raspberries. It was while we were researching some of those options that we started thinking about a vineyard.”
There are more than 80 wineries operating in Quebec, and, as it turned out, there were several for sale in the pre-covid days of 2019. “We visited a number of them,” Dominic says, “but they were established vineyards in recognized areas and the asking prices were well into the millions. Then we came across a small place, only recently planted as a vineyard. It had 25 acres of land and 4,000 vines in a place called Melbourne that neither of us had ever heard of. The price was right, but the place needed lots of elbow grease and lots of TLC.”
Originally named Clos des Deux Falaises, the vineyard never announced its presence in the area. Unlike Les Vallons de Wadleigh established in Ulverton just a few years earlier in 2008 and now a visibly thriving enterprise, Clos des Deux Falaises never put up even a small signpost to indicate it was there. In 2019 the original owner was anxious to sell.
“We took possession in September,” Dominic recalls, “right in the middle of harvesting.
Despite everything, we were able to produce about 6,000 bottles of wine that fall and almost everything was sold.”
That the fledgling winery, now called Vignoble Les Farfelus, was able to do so was the result of a solid business plan laid out long in advance. “We began marketing even before we began bottling,” Dominic explains. “We relied primarily on social media, like Facebook. We were able to create a certain amount of curiosity and interest. About 90% of our production went to small specialty shops with the rest going to restaurants.”
A key part of marketing is finding the perfect name for the product to be sold. The Melbourne vineyard and its products bear names not normally associated with the slightly tonier, more sophisticated world of wine and wineries. Farfelu is a word that eludes easy translation but has the connotation of whimsical or eccentric. The implication is that this vineyard is out of the ordinary, fun-loving, and perhaps, on occasion, just a little exuberant. Its wines carry names that echo the wit and humour often associated with Quebec’s thriving microbreweries. One wine is named Branquignol that translates as fool or jester; another is named Peau de vin, a play on words on an expression that refers to a bribe.
“We make an orange-tinted wine that sells for $25 and that has proven to be very popular,” says Dominic. “It’s made by incorporating the grape skins, and those give the wine its distinctive colour. We are also planning to make a wine that is known as Blanc de Noir. It’s a white wine made from red grapes.”
Behind the whimsically humorous names and unusual colours, there is thoughtful planning and a good deal of hard work.
“We decided at the outset that we wanted to grow organically,” Dominic says. “It will take some time to be certified organic, but ours is a radically different approach to that of the previous owner who relied extensively on chemicals to insure his crop.”
“Growing organically means that you use nature to your benefit and practice prevention to avoid potential problems,” he continues. “For example, one of the first things we did after our first harvest was prune back our vines, so they stood no more than a metre off the ground. By remaining low the plant has a greater chance of being covered by snow and therefore better protected through the winter.”
Although the vineyard has only 4,000 vines, it has eight different varieties of grapes. “We have a small number of a rare variety called Frederick,” says Dominic. “By itself, it does not make a particularly good wine. However, added in small quantities to another wine it acts like a spice and enhances the flavour. We don’t use sugar and we don’t use any thing that is contrary to organic certification.”
Presently, the vineyard is spread over four plots that total about two hectares. “We’ve already started preparing another seven hectares to allow us to eventually have 20,000 vines,” Dominic notes. “Grapes need particular soil but not rich soil. People joke that they can grow in gravel and sand. The old hayfields on this property are close to bedrock and they will be perfectly suitable.”
As well as work in the fields, there is work starting on the old barns that now house a winery. In one section, 18 metal vats of various sizes fill a room that might otherwise pass for a milk house on a dairy farm. Some are full of wine. In another place sits a wooden wine cask, its staves tightly bound with bright metal bands that indicate it is almost new. Nearby three large amphorae, similarly full of wine, serve a decorative function in a
room that will eventually serve to receive guests.
“The house dates back to 1840,” says Dominic, “or parts of it do. We don’t know exactly how old the barns are but they’re structurally sound and we’re slowly refurbishing them to our needs.”
This is being done with some sensitivity towards their original purpose. One large space, recently refinished and now given over to the storage of bottles and boxes features a short row of posts that once supported stanchions for cattle. “They don’t serve any purpose now,” says Dominic, “but we liked them, so we kept them.”
The most immediate project is the construction of a terrasse that will extend from one of the barns. “We want people to be able to stop by and taste a glass of wine,” Dominic Belleville explains. “We’ll only be open on weekends to start. The carpenters aren’t here yet but we’re hoping to open the terrasse by the end of June.”
Come summer, and covid restrictions permitting, anyone wishing to taste a slightly more eccentric wine will find it in Melbourne, at the Vignoble les Farfelus. It seems a good place to go to on a whim.