Page 12 - France
P. 12
Marquis de Goulaine winery is quite remarkable: it is accepted as the oldest
continuous wine producer in the world, making wine since around 1000AD.
It is believed to be the third oldest registered company in the world!
The Goulaine family were first mentioned in the seventh Crusade (1248) and
today over 30 generations later the noble Goulaine’s are alive and well and
still own the beautiful Chateau de Goulaine as their ancestral home.
The Marquis himself is a figure reminiscent of the Scottish enlightenment;
very keen on the arts and botany, in fact the family once ran a butterfly farm
on their estate. The Marquis can trace his family directly back to Mary
Queen of Scots, so the Auld Alliance is alive and well!
30 generations of "Goulaine" have Built around 950, in the heart of
succeeded in this property. Robert de present Nantes wine region,
Goulaine restored the castle, bought reconstructed by the end of the
from his uncle in 1957. It took more 15th century and listed as a
than 50 years of work to restore historical monument, Goulaine is
Goulaine to its former splendor. the most westerly of all the Loire
Valley castles.
