ARVAL
Association Pour la Renaissance de la Vigne à Livry
Association loi 1901 Siège Social : Mairie de Livry Sur Seine 77000
March 2011
What is l’’ARVAL, what is
“La Confrerie du Clos des Pierrottes ?
It is a French registered non profit association of benevolent and volunteers who decided, in 2003 to replant a vineyard in the village of Livry sur Seine, located close to Melun, 50 kilometres south east of Paris on the Seine river bank.
The aim of the association is cultural as far as it retraces the history of the village which, until the end of the 19th century, lived from a single income: wine.
Wine production disappeared when the phylloxera disease killed all French vine grapes until the American roots (phylloxera resistant) were imported from California. This disease, associated with the railways transportation development (which enabled cheap wine transportation from better production areas in France) stopped almost all wine production in Paris region.
For the last 20 years many villages and cities around Paris have started to produce some wine again for fun, not for business. As France is a country of wine culture, producing local wine has become popular. There are now about 100 vineyards around Paris and they gather through “confreries” to regularly celebrate chapter events.
“Confreries” are similar to associations; they are generally related to local specific foods or drinks such as “appellations contrôlées” which are a guaranty of quality.
L’ARVAL is one of these types of associations; we created it in 2003. The acronym means: Association for the Renewal of Vineyard At Livry. After 6 years of learning how to plant, to treat vines against diseases, to grape harvest, to make wine and to stabilize it, a team of about 25 benevolent have produced 300 bottles of Chardonnay white wine in 2006, 400 in 2007 and only 145 in 2008 due to a bad 2008 summer weather. In 2009 and 2010 we saw production rising to respectively 450 and 520 bottles.
Our vineyard is among the average in size for those in the region, we have 420 vine grapes when the others range from 80 to 2000. For the size of our village: 2000 people, the vineyard is quite a challenge for amateurs.
As all wine producers in Paris area we do not sell our production because we are a non profit organization and we are out of the regions which are allowed, by law, to grow vines for business. So, our production is only used during local gatherings, cocktails or meals and for gifts. Our only income to-day comes from contributions from membership (120 members to day), and from donations or sponsorship. We organize a wine tasting event each year, early April, when we bottle the new wine. A banquet is also set, on the village square, around the day of grapes harvesting in October.
To learn and share experiences from others, we gather through brotherhood chapters which are a revival of our ancestors’ customs. In order to better participate to those “confreries” (brotherhood) events we have decided to launch our own one, on June 13, 2009, called:
« La Confrerie du Clos des Pierrottes »
Each brotherhood has its own dress and banner and for each chapter there is a ceremony at the village church to bless the new wine production, followed by a parade to the vineyard, a reception by the local municipal council and, in the evening, a cocktail - introductory chapter of new “fellow members” is carried out, followed by a gala dinner and dance.
In view of our new development we had to decide on our dress and banner. They are hand made by benevolent women of our association. The cost of those dresses plus the cost our “chapters” events have led us to search for sponsorship. In 2009, for our inauguration Chapter, we received an enthusiastic welcome from local businesses and authorities, and from WLFC and CFMI/ SAFRAN, who took this opportunity to invite their friends or customers to become “induced” as fellows of “La Confrerie du Clos des Pierrottes”.
On the 18th of June 2011 we plan a similar celebration which has the following schedule:
· 4 to 5.30 pm: Parade through the village streets and visit to the vineyard followed by a wine tasting, at the vineyard, offered by then local council,
· From 6.00 pm to 7.30 pm tour of the SAFRAN aerospace museum, at the Melun- Villaroche airfield,
· From 7.30 to 8.30 pm, cocktail and Confrère inducement of the new Knights,
· From 8.30 to midnight, gala dinner and dance.
The invitations are sent to:
· The mayor of Livry,
· The county commissioner,
· The local representatives to the French house of Parliament and Senate,
· The representatives of our sponsors: WLFC, CFMI, SAFRAN, SNECMA… and their friends and customers,
· The Great Masters and members of many other, confreries in their brotherhood dresses,
· ARVAL members in their brotherhood dresses,
Attached are a few pictures of our vineyard plantation and maintenance, some past events and a few pictures of our banner being made as well as the ladies dresses.
You can use the event to thank your friends or customers by getting them honoured as: “Chevalier du Clos des Pierrottes” (Knight of the Confrérie).
