Léonie & Raymond COCQUIO

The first thing Léonie sees when she gets up in the morning is her 2 hectares of vineyards. And as for the view, take our word for it, there are worse things! Between La Petite Grave, Avully and Cartigny, she grows Gamay, Chasselas, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc, Gamaret and Merlot. However, winegrowing isn’t the only activity undertaken by the Cocquio family. On their estate, they grow arable crops, but above all their flagship product: lentils. In fact, they were the first – alongside the Courtois farm – to introduce lentils to Geneva over 25 years ago.

“I’ve caught the bug.”

Léonie is not your typical winemaker: she is also a freelance graphic designer. In fact, that is her original training. She then moved into watch design for around ten years, before setting off with her husband on a nine-month trip around South-East Asia, with nothing but a rucksack and no return ticket. On her return, she came to help out at the family estate, eventually catching the winemaking bug. As for her husband, he supports her in this venture. In 2016, Léonie took over the estate in her own name, although her retired father still works alongside her. The family – from Léonie’s grandfather right through to her father – have always been winegrowers at La Cave de Genève.

Memories, memories…

With a twinkle in her eye, she recalls memories of long queues of tractors heading to deliver grapes to La Cave, back when it was still based in Satigny. She even remembers sitting on the tractor’s mudguard, watching this wonderful sight with delight.

What a woman!​

When asked to describe herself in a few words, Léonie tells us she is a rather reserved and curious person. But bear in mind that she exudes a great deal of friendliness and admits she’s always up for a drink with friends. As the conversation progresses, another side to her personality emerges: her uniqueness. Not very tall, petite and a fan of original, flashy sunglasses, she tells us she stands out from her colleagues. And she really likes not fitting into a mould or being pigeonholed!

Léonie believes that to be a good winemaker, you need to be curious, observant and, of course, passionate. She adds that you need to keep up to date with the latest developments, but also look back so as not to lose sight of what previous generations have contributed to the profession. And she loves her job because it is constantly evolving, even if it means having to adapt to a changing and sometimes even capricious natural environment.

Her favourite season is winter. This is the time of year when everything has to be prepared for the following year and, above all, she isn’t put off by the cold. She also particularly enjoys the harvest, as it’s a chance to catch up with her colleagues and round off the season on a high note.

She envisages a future with effective solutions that will enable us to use fewer plant protection products in the vineyards. We’ll therefore need to be clever about how we manage our crops in the future. She ends on a humorous note, telling us: “Above all, I hope we’ll carry on drinking wine!” And as far as she’s concerned, to hell with clichés – her favourite wine from La Cave is La Grande Cuvée by Baccarat. As for a touch of originality, she reckons a good Sauvignon Blanc is always welcome with a Thai dish or a tasty curry.

Before bringing this lovely time spent in her company to a close, Léonie adds that she admires the work carried out by La Cave de Genève, and in particular that of the oenologists who have succeeded in creating high-quality wines.