At the Abbey of Jouques, rosé for a new roof

Three cuvées: two red wines and a rosé.

Last September, they visited the obvious: it was no longer possible that they are raining in the rooms of the novices. The common cells and rooms of the novitiate which today hosts five young women are on the top floor of the monastery, under the attic. Added to the building in 1975, its roof took the water. It had been built with few means, in an emergency, in order to house the many arrivals. The first nuns, in 1967, had built the monastery for 25. “But in 1975, there were already 18 novices,” says Sister Armelle. These vocations, as unexpected as it is numerous, forced the sisters to push the walls.

“For the renovation, we started with a realistic objective,” adds the nun. The nuns initiated half of the work in March, the renovation of just over 300 m2 of roof. They would actually need to redo 600 m2. If the first wine sale operation is a success, they would like to “double the bet” and repair the entire dilapidated roof. For the moment, the sale has started well. They are delighted with a real momentum of support.

“We could have made only a call to donations, but with the bottle of wine we invite ourselves to the table of people, during their good times,” explains Sister Armelle. The Bénédictines Vignerons offer three cuvées: two red wines and one rosé. The latter is their flagship bottle. They named it exsult, to express their joy of working with their hands in their field of nine hectares. “It is a very fruity, a little dry rosé. This year he particularly feels fishing and red fruits, ”notes the nun.

The Benedictine community, made up of nuns aged 23 to 92, continues to grow. In 1991, then in 2005, the sisters founded two other monasteries, in the Alps and in Benin. Today, five to seven young women join the novitiate each year. In addition, the community shares the buildings of the Abbey with visitors looking for rest, welcomed in their two guest houses.