Terre Ducru is a unique, magnificent, vast and wild land.
The Domaine d’Entremonts, where the magic happens, is the only property in the valley of Cagalou, where a rich biodiversity lives - preserved by the European conservation program Natura2000 - as evidenced by the presence of the Eurasian eagle-owl who co-habitates with us on these lands. We are in the heart of the superb Alpilles massif, a regional natural park so unique for its rocky formations of rugged limestone hills where the strong mistral wind rushes, blows, whistles, and hoots, giving this wilderness region an air of being at the end of the world. The Domaine d’Entremonts is also close to the stones from the past: the ruins of the Oppidum des Caisses Jean-Jean, dating from the protohistoric era of the 6th century BC, are our closest neighbours. Here, cultivation of the olive tree by mankind is older than History itself, it is as old as the world.
Terre Ducru is a treasure of Nature: one of the most remote and wild areas where olive trees of the prestigious Protected Designation of Origin (appélation d’origine protégée, A.O.P. in french) “Huile d’olive de la vallée des Baux-de-Provence” are cultivated. This “A.O.P.” is recognised worldwide for its unique five varieties of olives, one of which, the Salonenque, is endemic of the region, and for its limestone soil withholding a very low acidity.
We let them breathe in the mistral with at least 25 square meters per tree at a minimum distance of 5 meters from one other. We encourage grass to grow at the foot of each tree, preserving humidity in an arid region, and increasing the biodiversity of insects and birds which balance the ecosystem and help in the fight against parasites. This also provides grass for sheep to graze, letting them in return yield natural and organic fertilizers to the land.
This makes of Terre Ducru a proud organic product. Our precious blend of earth, “terre” in french, and olives creates unique olive oils, soft, well-round and fruity, with little acidity or roughness.
Here, the olive trees are respected.
He has a sparkling gaze, a joyful childlike smile, and a contagious laughter. Philippe Ducru has always been an original and pioneering curisous adventurer, eager for freedom, exchanges, and encounters, exploring new horizons, traveling through great wild spaces, and discovering the treasures of Nature and Mankind. Constantly inventing new projects, dreaming big, always in his own unique way, resulting in creations so personal and deeply human. Defying all categorisation, Ducru’s work is out of league.
Full of humour and spontaneity
The unique, the extraordinary, the original, the bold, the humour, the generosity, the adventure, the dream, the treasure, the elegant, the simple and magnificent: this is the true class.
Man and Nature, these are the true wealths and luxuries. The art of the blend in quintessencially French. Like a perfumer in his field, our Master Blender Philippe Ducru carefully selects and combines a refined mix of olives to achieve his subtle unique olive oil.