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Languedoc 1: Coteaux du
Languedoc & sub-zones
Languedoc 2: Corbières & Fitou
Languedoc 4: Limoux
Malepère & Cabardès
Languedoc 5: Vin de Pays d'Oc
Languedoc 6: Sommières & Nîmes
 Domaine Alquier
Established by pioneering dad Gilbert more than 40 years ago (there weren't many
grape-growers making their own wines at that time), this 12 ha / 30 acre
estate is run nowadays by charming couple Frédéric (son of) and Florence Alquier.
They make traditional lush smoky reds from Syrah, Mourvèdre and old
Carignan & Grenache; and, as I've seen elsewhere in the region, an increasingly good white Faugères fashioned from
those star Rhone varieties Roussanne and Marsanne, as demonstrated by the forthcoming 2009 vintage (see
notes below). Mind you, there won't be much of it as yields in 09 for whites were
"down to 15 hl/ha instead of 40 to 50 usually," Frédéric told me as we tasted in
his cellar in November 2009. By the way, I couldn't help noticing one of those
newfangled basket presses (wooden slats on the outside with automated plungey
screw bit) - not that I get so excited about winery equipment, but these are
becoming very de rigueur as they seem to be "much better for reds than the old
ones like Vaslin," as Frédéric explained.
So, if you're touring around this pretty area (definitely wild-pretty rather
than pretty-pretty), why not go and taste in the Alquier's cosy on-site tasting
room, which joins on to the office at the back of their house across the yard
from the more visible new cellar. More details of where to find them etc. are on
their website: follow the signs heading for Pézènes off to the left on the way
out of the village. Alquier's wines are imported into the UK by Richards Walford
(a bit of an estate-Languedoc specialist who sell to many well-known London
restaurants).
2007 white Faugères (Roussanne,
Marsanne) - honeyed and lightly toasted with
attractive colourful spicy fruit; peppery and quite powerful palate showing
mature creamy notes then mineral finish, drinking now. 83-85
2009 white (Roussanne
Marsanne vat sample) - delicious citrus vs exotic fruit, floral and peppery
too; juicy and crisp vs subtle roundness and weight, already very nice.
87+
2006 Faugères "tradition" (Syrah
Grenache
Carignan)
- not so open on the nose, develops nice dark cherry fruit with herbal red
pepper tones; juicy and lightly smoky with liquorice flavours, softish tannins
saying drink me now although it will keep a couple of years longer.
85
2005 Faugères "tradition" - resiny mature fruit with spicy
touches, again quite elegant and drinking now, although this has more weight and
tannins than the 06, then "sweet" liquorice on the finish.
85-87
2005 Eugènie Faugères (mostly
Syrah)
- slightly toasty oak and chocolate coating enhanced by spicy black cherry
fruit; shows more depth, concentration and structure with layered tannins adding
grip and closing it up a little on the finish. 89
2004 Eugènie - more perfumed even with smokier fruit too, softer
and more elegant with attractive dry texture vs "sweet/savoury" fruit and grainy
edges. 87
Tasted from vat or cask:
2007 "tradition" - nice crunchy berry fruit vs darker liquorice, spicy
and juicy with sexy tannins. 87
2008 "tradition" - more floral violet aromas, pure peppery black cherry
too; liquorice flavours again, more concentrated and grippier than the 07,
promising. 87-89
2006 Eugènie - menthol notes with light coconut/cedar spice; appealing
lush mouthfeel with dark fruit vs firm and spicy finish, complex and
well-balanced. 89-91
Clos Timothée, 6 Route de Pézènes-les-Mines, 34600
Faugères. Tel: 04 67 95 15 21,
frederic@gilbert-alquier.fr,
www.gilbert-alquier.fr.
Domaine La Borie-Fouisseau
Véronique Vaquer-Bergan's perhaps promising, small estate amounts to seven ha
(17 acres) lying on dry stoney slopes, with some vines planted at up at 500
metres altitude, around the dead little village of Laurens in deepest Faugères country. Although Béziers is only
half-an-hour or so south of here, you don't have to go too far north before you
hit the edges of fairly serious mountain ranges. Véronique is Ecocert
organic-certified and at the moment makes just three AOC red wines, which I
sampled at
Millésime Bio
wine show in January 2009 in Montpellier.
2006 La Salamandre (Grenache
Cinsault Syrah Carignan)
- a bit closed up and firm to start, some dark fruit lurking underneath; I
wasn't sure about it, at that moment at least.
2004 Garance (mostly
Mourvèdre)
- warm spicy garrigue tones with black olive and
dried fruits, very aromatic; solid powerful mouth-feel v fragrant fruit and wild
herb edges; lively and different.
89
2005 Clara (mostly
Grenache)
- 'vinous' nose with lots of liquorice, very firm tannins on a punchy palate; a
touch over-extracted but it's intriguing and promising.
10 Avenue de la Gare, 34480
Laurens.
Tel: 06 18 38 00 60, vaquerdago@aol.com.
 Borie
La Vitarèle
Certified
organic and farmed along biodynamic lines by Cathy Planès
and Jean François Izarn, this charming 16 ha/40 acre property is lost in
the countryside beyond the village co-op (it's nicely signposted
though). Their Saint-Chinian appellation wines are labelled by
vineyard site, such as Les Schistes (more than one type of schist,
obviously: plural schists sounds odd in English) or Terres Blanches (chalk & clay), reflecting
the varieties planted and nurtured across different plots
and soils. They also appear to have been quite
successful with Cabernet and, more surprisingly, Merlot (see
notes below) in this area since setting
up the domaine in 1990.
Cathy
and Jean François can also provide
full-blown meals in their
cosy ferme-auberge (farmhouse-inn literally) for a minimum of ten people,
if
booked in advance (including
a good dose of
organic
food,
I assume, matched with the
estate's wines),
which must be a great
way to integrate
the actual
flavours of their labours, and philosophy, with
good hearty local
produce. I tasted these
in situ
in November 2007:
2006
La Cuvée des Cigales,
Vin de Pays des Coteaux de Murviel (Grenache
Merlot)
– nice fruity spicy style showing a bit of grip and depth
too, easy drinking and ready to do so.
83-85
2006
Terres Blanches,
St-Chinian (80%
Grenache
20%
Syrah) – attractive rich black cherry fruit with
liquorice tones, quite chunky tannins v fruit concentration,
power and length; needs a few months at least to open up, lovely
length and style.
89-91
2001
La Combe,
Vin de Pays des Coteaux de Murviel (60%
Cabernet Sauvignon
plus
Syrah Merlot)
– appealing volatile complexity and developing fruit, meaty
with perfumed cassis edges; maturing palate v rather stonky
tannins, powerful yet lush finish.
88-90
And these at Millésime Bio wine show Jan 2009, Montpellier:
2008 Terres Blanches (vat sample) - lovely intensity
of peppery black cherry and cassis fruit; firm and 'chalky' texture
v fruity and silkily structured.
89+
2007 Les Schistes (Grenache
Syrah
Carignan)
- firmer and more structured v richer mouth-feel, very spicy dark
fruit with power and promise.
90-92
2007 La Combe (Cabernet Sauvignon
Syrah)
- smokier and more rustic, very chunky and solidly textured v ripe
cassis and prune, again powerful finish.
90
2006 Les Crès
(Syrah
Mourvèdre)
- still a bit closed on the nose, concentrated and very firm with a
tad of coco/chocolate oak; pretty huge and quite extracted but also
has nice developing tobacco edges and plenty of lush fruit. Needs
6-12 months to come together properly.
92+?
View
my notes on more BLV wines by
clicking here (Millésime Bio
2006) and
here (Montpellier
2005).
La Combe, 34490
Causses-et-Veyran.
Tel: 04 67 89 50 43, fax: 04 67 89 70 79;
jf.izarn@libertysurf.fr,
www.borielavitarele.fr.
 Saint-Chinian
"odds and sods"
A couple of forgotten yet plush reds (re)discovered from the tasting
table at Millésime Bio organic wine show (Perpignan Jan 2008). I
didn't get around to following up with the producers on their stands
or writing them up until now, six months later although none of them
is in danger of fading away! So 'ones to watch' perhaps or 'ones to
call in on' when next in the area...
Château Bousquette 2005 Cuvée Pruneyrac Saint-Chinian (Mourvèdre
Grenache)
- dark fruits and liquorice with pepper and leather tones; fairly
dense mouth-feel with firm structured finish; a fairly 'wow' kinda
red.
90+?
Route de Cazouls, 34460 Cessenon:
www.chateaubousquette.com.
Update 2010 from Millésime Bio
organic fair in Montpellier. Owned and run by Swiss winegrowers Eric
and Isabelle Perret since 1996, although the property's 24 ha/60
acres have been organically farmed since 1972 actually; quite
progressive in the scheme of things. Bousquette (pic.) lies on the
eastern side of the Saint-Chinian appellation about 15 km northwest
of Béziers.
2007 "tradition" (Syrah,
Grenache, Mourvèdre,
Carignan) - dried fruity and smoky
nose, ripe and liquoricey vs tobacco edges; tasty and soft-ish
palate, nice now. 85
2006 Cuvée Pruneyrac (Mourvèdre,
Grenache)
- a tad reductive or struck-matchy
(?) on the nose yet enticingly fruity too; lovely concentrated
pruney fruit vs pretty solid tannins and fair oomph on the finish.
88+
2008 L'Absolu (Mourvèdre,
Grenache,
Carignan) - a dollop of sweet oak
overridden by attractive black fruit / olive notes; quite intense
and fruity with firm yet rounded framework, closes up on the finish;
should be interesting when it softens a little.
87+
2006 Prestige (Syrah,
Grenache) - herbal vs liquorice on the
nose; rich yet very solid mouthfeel bolstered by delicious depth of
maturing fruit and attractive weight, still young though in the end.
90
Domaine Canet Valette 2006 Ivresses... Saint-Chinian (90%
Grenache
+
Syrah
Mourvèdre) - ripe lush and vibrant with attractive liquorice
and tobacco notes; shows real depth of fruit v big tannins, well
balanced despite its power and grip.
90
www.canetvalette.com
Mas
Champart
Isabelle
and Matthieu Champart, who bought their first vineyard here over
30 years ago, craft an unimpeachable range of mostly reds
(although I'm not that keen on their white - see below - but
it's early days for this kind of style, given that white
wines have only really been coming on-stream for a few years) at this
secluded 16 ha (planted out of 25), or 40 acre, Saint-Chinian estate. It's
located on the rapid climb, at 200m to 300m altitude (650-950
feet), to the
south of the town just before the hamlet of Cazo; and is
essentially a patchwork
of about
twenty distinct plots. Their star
reds are 'Clos de la Simonette' (mostly
south-facing
vineyard on steep terraces, although one parcel has a more
northerly exposure: the fruit from here is used for rosé,
Matthieu told me in 2005) with at least 70% Mourvèdre and
Grenache; and Causse du Bousquet, a more classic Syrah, Mourvèdre,
Grenache and Carignan blend. By the way, their Mourvèdre
was originally
selected from
Domaine Tempier in Bandol
and Château de Beaucastel, that slightly well-known CNDP
property.
They
have plans to build a
better visitor reception
area
at some point (the cellar is
appealingly small), so you can taste and chat in comfort.
I visited Mas Champart
in late Nov. 2007 and opened
these two bottles shortly
afterwards:
2005
Causse du Bousquet,
St-Chinian (50-60%
Syrah
plus
Grenache
Mourvèdre Carignan
14%) - quite fine mix of ripe v earthy black cherry with very
light cinnamon oak spice; lush concentrated and full v tight firm
framework, restrained finish showing weight and elegance too.
89-91
2006
Saint-Chinian blanc
(Marsanne
Roussanne Bourboulenc Grenache blanc)
– toasty coconut nose with some creamy yeasty notes, full
and rounded with submerged aromatic fruit but overall the oak's a
bit heavy-handed, finishing too overtly woody.
80+
View
my notes on more Champart wines by
clicking here (Vinisud
2006) and
here (Montpellier
2005).
Bramefan, Route de Villespassans, 34360
Saint-Chinian.
Tel: 04 67 38 20 09 (cellar), 04 67 38 05 59 (office),
mas-champart@wanadoo.fr.
 Domaine
de la Combe Blanche
Guy Vanlancker
has slightly more eclectic plantings than most in the area -
including some Tempranillo and
Pinot Noir too! - which are the base (the non-eclectic varieties
that this) for two pretty representative blends, both AOC Minervois-La Livinière: La Chandelière (mostly
Syrah + Grenache)
and La Galine (Syrah Grenache Carignan Cinsault), among others.
These wines seem to stand the test of time well, especially La Chandelière:
I remember once trying a rather good 1990 or 91 with about ten years
on the clock, which I'd given to my uncle & aunt a few years
beforehand and who'd had the sense to keep it. Anyway, Belgian Guy first moved here in
1981 and bought a few vineyard parcels around La Livinière, which is
a cute wee village; so it’s easy to visit a few other producers on
foot, especially since there are plenty of suitably pointy
signposts. I bumped into Guy at the end of October 2008, during
Les Grands Chemins "Rencontres en Minervois" festival,
and tasted the following:
2003 La Galine (14.5%) - warming and spicy, quite soft yet
punchy mouth-feel; turning savoury, mature and tasty on the finish.
87+
2004 La Chandelière (60% Syrah)
- quite tight and firm with chocolate oak texture; concentrated and
lightly perfumed, pepper and liquorice with attractive dry tannins
on the finish. 89-91
And these at Vinisud in Montpellier back in Feb 2004:
2001 La Chandelière - Leathery touches to the tightly
structured and spicy fruit, finishes with long bite of tannins and
alcohol. Needs time to come together. 92
2002 La Galine - Rich chocolate and plum fruit, very
concentrated and tight, grippy but quite fine and fresh too.
90
2000 La Galine - Aromatic, spicy pepper and blackberry; has
nice texture and grip with lengthy mineral finish.
89
2000 Vin de Pays blanc (Roussanne
Viognier Chardy) - Developing vegetal and complex minty
notes, light toffee characters lend a rounded 'sweetness', finishing
with a blast of alcohol. 87
2002 Vin de Pays blanc -
Bit of toasty oak combines with creamy and yeast-lees characters;
rounded and quite rich, dry and full finish.
87
2001 Vin de Pays Tempranillo -
Lots of new oak and very grippy texture; we'll see if it opens out
nicely as it's too oaky at the moment, although there could be
something there... 80-84
Didn't like his 2001 Pinot at the time, I'm afraid!
3 Ancien
Chemin du Moulin Rigaud, 34210 La Livinière.
Tel: 04 68 91 44 82 or 06 80 43 40 61 (mobile), lacombeblanche.com,
contact@lacombeblanche.com.
 Château
Coujan
Florence Guy makes quite a large
and varied range at this
peaceful estate found a few km out of Murviel-lès-Béziers, on the eastern side
of the Saint-Chinian appellation. Her top
wines are definitely worth seeking out, e.g.
an
off-the-wall 100% Mourvèdre that varies in taste-profile according
to vintage - sometimes labelled as St-Chinian, sometimes Vin de Pays
if ‘non-conformist’ in terms of alcohol or residual sugar content -
see below for explanation! Her team also organises walks, wine
dinners, summer concerts and art and cookery classes even (the
Lebanese food weekend was a big hit apparently). There are also two
on-site family gîtes available all year round (see website);
it's quite nice
just to hang out here
sitting outside, and why not try Coujan’s olive oil while you're at
it, listening to the roaming peacocks squawking (funny birds aren't
they). Wines tasted June
2006:
2005 Rolle, Vin de Pays Coteaux de Murviel -
floral and honeyed, crisp mineral tones v fatter fruit; different. €4.95
85
2005 Bois Joli, Saint-Chinian blanc (Rolle
Grenache
Blanc Roussanne) - barrel sample: light toast with mealy creamy notes,
good weight and concentration v citrus zest. €6.90 87+
2004 Tradition rosé, Saint-Chinian (80%+
Mourvèdre)
- attractive tangy strawberry fruit with still quite crisp and lively palate,
fat v fresh finish. €4.60 87+
2003 Cuvée Gabrielle de Spinola, Saint-Chinian (Mourvèdre
Syrah Grenache Cinsault) - lovely black cherry & olive aromas, liquorice
v peppery; solid fruity mouthful, powerful yet balanced. €5.90
87-89
2002 Cuvée Spéciale Bois Joli, Saint-Chinian (Mourvèdre
Syrah) - rich leather and spice tones with light chocolate, quite mature
with nicely textured tannins. €12 87-89
2004 Ile de Corail, Vin de Pays Coteaux de Murviel (100%
Mourvèdre)
- gorgeous ripe wild herb, liquorice and cherry tones; rich lush mouthfeel v
structured and fresh, very different. Actually has 10 grams residual sugar and
15% alc, hence why it's VDP this vintage! €23 90+
34490
Murviel-lès-Béziers. Tel: 04 67
37 80 00, chateau-coujan@orange.fr
or stanislas.pujol@wanadoo.fr,
www.chateau-coujan.com.
 Château des
Estanilles
New kid on the block Julien Seydoux (pic. right, obviously, next to
the previous owner) is
quite laid-back considering what he's taken on, an
exciting-potential Faugères winery / 35 ha (85 acre) estate; with
a little help from its well-established vineyard and name. He told me his
philosophy wasn't so different from previous owner Michel Louison,
although in the vineyard Julien's already on the way to organic
certification and has been implementing changes in the cellar as
well.
"I'm getting rid of 70 barriques this year replacing them with more
demi-muids (a larger 450 to 600 litre cask) for the malo-lactic
fermentation and small wooden vats for the Grenache," he explained.
"I'm not interested in making "natural wines" as such, as I want to
be sure the wines will all age well with no unexpected problems. But
I do go for minimum intervention after fermentation and using as
little SO2 as possible." All sounds reasonable to me.
Julien also
took me for a hairy spin up the steep (and rather muddy/slippery on
that rainy mid-June day) south-facing Clos du Fou vineyard (runs up
to 300m/1000ft), which Louison compactly planted with Syrah, much to
the amazement of the locals at the time ("he must be mad" type
comments hence the name), where you get a grand view of the vine-scape
around
Lenthéric. Julien exports to the UK (Terroir Languedoc and Yapp
Bros) and Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany, Canada and Japan - see
website for more info. A few notes on his wines follow - well, mostly his predecessor's
actually as Julien only took the place over last year... As I said, I went there in
June 2010, talked and tasted.
2007 Faugères blanc (Marsanne,
Roussanne) - oily nutty maturing nose;
rounded and mealy palate with aromatic floral honey flavours too,
fair weight vs a touch mineral on the finish. Captivating little
number. 85
2008 Le Rosé M (mostly
Mourvèdre
15% alc. oak-aged!) - rather toasty and punchy, oily texture vs
crisp bite vs alcohol vs toasted chocolate flavours. Odd but why not
I s'pose. Not sure if Julien's going to carry on with this quirky
style: he already does a classic unoaked rosé, which we didn't taste
for some reason.
2007 Faugères Tradition (1/5 each
Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Cinsault, Carignan 14% alc.) -
ripe maturing and smoky with dominant black cherry notes;
attractively lush and ripe mouth-feel with peppery vs
"sweet/savoury" edges, light bitter twist and dry grip. €6
85+
2005 Faugères Prestige (Grenache,
Syrah, Mourvèdre 14.5% alc.) - complex "cheesy" tones
underpinned by subtle vanilla oak and dark berry fruits; smoky and
rich vs grippy and structured, touch of coco/choc tannins yet quite
dry and austere still; has power, weight and richness to finish
though. €9.50 87+
2007 Grande Cuvée (mostly Syrah
14.5% alc.) - lightly toasted chocolate again although it's pretty
rich; "rubbery" oak dominates to start vs concentrated blackberry
and cherry, punchy mouth-feel then tight firm and grippy with
chocolate tannins on top; a touch extracted maybe but has lots of
nice fruit too, taut and long vs big and textured. Needs time still.
€16.50 88-90
2003 Grande Cuvée - more savoury and developed vs ripe
cassis with herby edges; quite big and grippy with powerful streak,
sweet vs dry texture; a bit too much vanilla/cloves/cinnamon still
present from the oak vs chunky and concentrated finish. Not sure if
it'll improve much, it's big and impressive but a bit forced and out
of balance. 87
2006 Le Clos du Fou (Syrah
14.5% alc.) - showing quite a lot of smoky new oak still but it's
lush and concentrated with much nicer tannins than above; still very
structured and tight with better balance of power and wood texture
vs "sweet/savoury" richness underneath. Wow. €24
90+
Lenthéric, 34480 Cabrerolles.
Tel: 04 67 902 925,
www.chateau-estanilles.com.
 Château Faîteau
The timeless twisty-alleyed
village of
La Livinière, lying about half an hour north of Lézignan-Corbières, appears to have as many
signposts pointing to wine cellars as street names. No bad thing, given the
generally high standards being achieved in this Minervois sub-appellation. I
first
called in at Jean-Michel Arnaud's place on 9th February 2006 for a chat and
tasting (see below).
Jean-Michel, whose family are former cooperative growers turned independent
in 1998, coaxes quite impressive complex reds out of Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre and Carignan in his compact little winery (two or three
visitors at once maximum!). The latest release (end of 2008) 2004
vintage La Livinière is
a pretty classic example, showing solid weight / tannins and smoky
versus ‘sweet’ fruit. If you want to go and see him, call in advance as he's often out in the
vineyards. He also sometimes puts on summer barbeques in conjunction with other
growers and takes part in an annual spring
event called, unsurprisingly, ‘Printemps
du Minervois’ (see website).
By the way, other producers of Minervois La
Livinière to look out for include Domaine de la Combe
Blanche, Domaine Anger, Domaine la Rouviole and Château
Cesseras;
as well as Sainte-Eulalie below.
2003 Minervois (Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre
& Carignan) - attractive perfumed spicy black cherry
with rustic leather notes; plenty of liquorice, black fruits and spice in
the mouth with a bit of bite and weight; good for AC Minervois.
85-87
2001 Minervois La Livinière (Syrah, Grenache
& Carignan) - liquorice and earth, nice black cherry
fruit underlined with choc oak; developing complexity, grip v elegant
concentration, length and style; closes up a little on the finish although the
sample was very cold. 90+
2002 Minervois
La Livinière - not so revealing on the nose, chunky blackberry
fruit lies on top of textured oak; concentrated and meaty, firm tight
finish with nice lingering depth of fruit. 90+
Update 2009:
I bumped
into
Jean-Michel at the end of October 08, during
Les Grands Chemins "Rencontres en Minervois" festival,
and tasted the following:
2004
Minervois
La Livinière - fairly complex and smoky, also showing light
wild herbs v rich dark fruit; solid palate with underlying chocolate
oak v 'sweet & sour', liquorice & tobacco on its good length. £9.95
fromvineyardsdirect.com
90+
Update 2010:
Jean-Michel
had his latest vintage with him on the
evening of 10th March, when a big group of us ate at
Le Marie-Jean restaurant in Sète (that link goes to a post on my
blog), during the marathon week of "en primeur" tastings of 2009
vintage Languedoc wines:
2006
Château Faiteau Minervois
La Livinière - quite coconut spicy at the moment but has nice dark
fruit and liquorice flavours; punchy palate with pretty grippy
tannins although attractive grainy/rounded texture, tight spicy
finish. Needs 6 months to open up a bit, promising.
Route des
Meulières, 34210 La Livinière.
Tel: 04 68 91 48 28 / 06 15 90 89 48,
jma-ch-faiteau@wanadoo.fr,
www.chateau-faiteau.leminervois.com.
Domaine de Fenouillet
Click here to view my feature on
these Jeanjean estates. The following wines were sampled in situ in
late April 2010:
 2008
Faugères (Grenache, Syrah,
Cinsault, Carignan, Mourvèdre
13%) - "sweet" perfumed black/red fruits and "garrigue" notes; dark berry and
cherry flavours vs crunchier fruit edges, touch of dark chocolate and spicy
liquorice adding lush feel vs firm tannins, punch then tight finish; very nice.
87-89
2008 Combe Rouge Faugères (mostly Syrah, Grenache)
- less accessible and charming now (although again it was cold) with
somewhat firm tight and solid mouth-feel vs underlining ripe "sweet" scented
blackberry fruit; promising though and also has lively crunchy fruit finish,
showing more on that finish than at the start. Needs 2-3 years to express
itself. 89-91
2006 Grande Réserve Faugères (mostly Syrah, Grenache
13%) - more savoury and resin/dried fruit tones; grippier with more choco oak on
its lush vs dry texture, complex maturing notes too; a touch extracted perhaps
vs power and maturing fruit, certainly has plenty of mouth-feel although it's less
charming than the 2007s and 08s probably. 88+
Le Petit Domaine de Gimios
Not far
out of St-Jean de Minervois,
taking a left off the winding road to St-Chinian, you’ll eventually
find Anne-Marie Lavaysse's indeed little estate lost on the untamed
final frontier between Minervois and St-Chinian country. Anne-Marie
is quite a personality with a penchant for making ‘table wines’ from
quirky blends, such as Carignan, Aramon, Grenache, Cinsault and
Alicante. She also doesn’t use any sulphur dioxide in winemaking and
farms biodynamically, of course (see
www.bio-dynamie.org)! These two were tasted at
Millésime Bio 2005,
so not exactly up-to-date but I liked her off-the-wall-ness: I'll go
there next time I go for a spin in this wonderful neck of the woods.
Rouge de Causse vieilles vignes, Vin de Table (Carignan
Aramon Grenache Cinsault Alicante) - actually 2003 vintage but
she's not interested in AOC rules, also doesn't use sulphur or SO2
anywhere. 'Sweet' liquorice and dark chocolate, dry tannins supported by
lovely ripeness; delicious fruit v firm structure, unusual.
88-90
2000 Vin de Liqueur (Muscat petits grains,
115 gr/litre residual sugar) - lovely honey and maturing dried fruits,
intense bite v that sweetness, long and refined.
90+
Gimios,
34360 Saint-Jean-de-Minervois.
Tel: 04 67 38 26 10.
Les Grands Chemins: Minervois
"odds & sods"
The
following wines are my pick of a variety of producers tasted at
the end of October 2008, during
Les Grands Chemins "Rencontres en Minervois" (annual wine,
food and arts festival centred on the broodingly Mediaeval village
of Minerve and surrounding area - that link goes to the website);
mostly over a meal at the restaurants specified below.
With lunch at Restaurant - Hotel
d'Alibert, Caunes-Minervois:
2005 Paul Louis Eugène Vin de table blanc
Paul Durand (Marsanne
Sauvignon blanc 13.5%) - rule-breaking, quirky, slightly
volatile
style showing concentrated oily mouth-feel v fresh citrus and green
fruits; you wouldn't think it was 3 years old with its nice weight
and creamy texture v crisp bite. 88+
2003 Villa Serra Minervois rouge Claude
Serra (Grenache Mourvèdre
Carignan Cinsault
14%) -
smoky peppery nose with dark black cherry and olive notes; 'sweet' v savoury
palate, powerful and spicy v ripe and rounded. Nice with the duck
and roasted veg but not the orange sauce, giving it a lightly bitter
twist; but good wine though. 88+
These two estates with dinner at the
Relais
Chantovent, Minerve:
 Domaine
Cavaillès
- Minerve
www.leminervois.com
2005 Minervois (Syrah
Grenache
Carignan
13.5%) -
nice ripe rounded red fruits with smoky
garrigue notes; attractive depth
of spicy fruit v soft tannins and a bit of punch. Good with the
three-mushroom nems (Vietnamese style spring rolls).
87(+)
2007 Minervois (Syrah
Grenache
Carignan
13%) -
similar fruit and spice to the 05 but more liquoricey and with
tobacco undertones too; firmer mouth-feel v more concentrated, again
attractive garrigue style and
power on the finish. 89
Domaine Vordy -
Minerve
vordy.monsite.wanadoo.fr
2005 cuvée Alice Minervois rouge (14%) - very spicy with ripe
resiny wild fruits; powerful with light oak texture, closes up
becoming firmer but very fruity too. 89+
2006 Liquoreux (late picked Grenache
blanc & Terret, 80 grams/litre
residual sugar, 14.5%) - quite complex honey, fig and quince
notes/flavours v citrus and mineral freshness; nice balance and
style, not too sweet nor too alcoholic not too old!
89+
In the old
cellar at Château d'Agel
www.chateaudagel.fr
2004 Grenache - maturing smoky
nose, appealing full-bodied fruit v light bite of tannins to finish.
85+
2007 Minervois (Carignan Grenache
Syrah) - touch of vanilla oak but it
has attractive fruit, textured dark chocolate and bitter black fruit
twist. 85+
At the
Chai de Port Minervois - Homps (wine shop & tastings):
2005
Château Fauzan La Balme Minervois La Livinière
(80%
Syrah
20%
Grenache)
- lovely spicy menthol and very ripe black cherry fruit, liquorice v
pepper on the palate; quite complex and tasty with soft v powerful v
maturing finish. €8.60 88+
2007 Domaine Barroubio cuvée
classique Muscat de
Saint-Jean-de-Minervois (15%) - attractive style with typical floral
grapey and orange peel notes; sweet v good "cut" and fair punch &
intensity. Very nice with a local goats' cheese (didn't note its
name...). Still, a bit dear at €9. 85+
And their 08 vintage tasted in March 2010:
2008 Muscat St-Jean-de-Minervois
- textbook style with lively aromatic Muscat fruit; not so sweet in
the mouth thanks to its refreshing bite, nice with a light dessert
such as raspberry mousse.
At
Les
Tonneliers restaurant next door:
2007
Château
Festiano
'Vincent'
Minervois (Syrah
Grenache
13%) - seductive
up-front fruit and spice showing blackberry, liquorice and black
pepper; its fruitiness and freshness (acidity/tannins) on the palate
rendering my cassoulet a little less heavy!
85+
Domaine Tailhades
Mayranne - Minerve
2007 Minervois blanc (Marsanne Maccabeo)
- aromatic and floral nose v oily and quite powerful mouth-feel.
Nice style. 85
2006 cuvée Elise Minervois rouge - attractive pure
spicy Syrah fruit, good grip v depth of
fruit with lively peppery finish. 87+
 La
Grange d'Aïn
Cédric Saur's family owns and runs the quite well-known Château
Haut-Fabrègues near Cabrerolles, found in the
middle of nowhere in deepest Faugères country.
La Grange d'Aïn is Cédric's baby, 12 hectares (30 acres) of plum old
vineyards planted with Grenache, Carignan and Syrah and
farmed organically. He's making some pretty serious reds showing
lots of fruit extract, big tannins, power and occasionally oak.
Nevertheless, they're very well-made, tasty, full of character and
obviously built from true quality fruit and a hand-made approach,
rather than just show-stopping competition wines you wouldn't
actually want to drink. These three were sampled at the Millésime Bio
organic wine show (Perpignan Jan 2008). More info to follow as he's
definitely on my Faugères-visiting list (along with another
dozen or so...): see below below in fact!
2004 Le Penchant du Cerisier
Faugères (mostly Carignan +
Grenache, 2 years in barriques) - rich
smoky nose, very ripe and dense fruit with tobacco edges; really
solid framework although finishing with attractive liquorice and
spice flavours to balance. €12 90-92
2006 Le Cèdre Faugères (mostly
Grenache +
Carignan) - similarly smoky and ripe profile with dense
structure, although a tad fruitier v solid tannins and hallmark
liquorice & tobacco flavours. €11 88-90
2003 Les Mimosas (old vine Syrah, 4 years in barriques!) -
plush oily raisin fruit coated with lots of coconut tannins; the
wood is a bit intrusive and overall the wine a bit too extracted,
but it's certainly impressive and quirky.
87-89?
Update: I called in on Cédric on a dull and cold November's
day, 2009, and tried the latest vintages. We talked a little about
it really means to "go organic", and he said some interesting things
apart from the obvious "environmentally friendly" reasons. Briefly
paraphrased, the most important shift in thinking for him is "the way it made/makes him
look at growing grapes and making wine in a totally new light... once you remove
that guaranteed efficiency (from synthetic products)," Cédric mused,
"you have to work the vineyard in a very different way."
Basically, much more plot by plot watching and analysing how each
variety or vine reacts in each location; whether there's a problem
and how to deal with it, or whether you should just leave it alone.
Food for thought...
La Grange d'Aïn wines are now quite big in China, I'm told, as well
as certain Paris restaurants.
2007
Le Cèdre Faugères (mostly
Grenache +
Carignan 14.5%) - dark cherry with a tad of choco oak,
turning riper and spicier with meatier edges; lush smoky and
peppery, quite concentrated and structured, big mouthful vs "sweet"
vs firm yet attractive texture and finish. Underlying lightly
volatile complex notes too (he only
adds a little SO2 at bottling). 89+
2007
Le Penchant du Cérisier
Faugères (80% Carignan +
Grenache 14.5%) - less obvious on the
nose, although again has meaty / leather tinges; vibrant blueberry
and damson fruit, spicy and grippy mouthfeel with lively length,
"sweet/savoury" finish with more of it than the above; delicious
crunchy vs ripe berry with fine dry bite.
90-92
2003
Les Mimosas (mostly Syrah 14.5%)
- spent four years in barrel but it only has a lightly dusty coconut
coating vs meaty, leathery and smoked bacon tones; dry texture yet
there's lots of ripe dried fruits and real depth of character plus a
wilder side; chunky vs maturing finish.
90-92
2007 Le Penchant du Cérisier (3-litre bottle, bottled with no
SO2 from "our favourite barrel!") - actually more open and smokier,
perhaps the oak is a tad more upfront and grainy; but has attractive
chunky powerful vs lush mouthfeel with blackberry fruit, grippy
texture and firmer coating on the finish.
90+
2003 Le Penchant du Cérisier (their first vintage) -
reductive sulphide notes but has complex leather and dried fruit
underneath; quite rustic although I like its delicious richness vs
concentrated and firm feel, leaving a nice coating on the finish;
actually well-balanced for a 2003
(alcohol/acidity/concentration/tannins).
88-90
Fontanilles, Lenthéric near 34480 Cabrerolles.
Tel: 06 12 10 31 02,
cedricsaur@hotmail.com,
www.cookandwine.com.
 Clos
du Gravillas
Nicole,
and later American John Bojanowski (becoming husband: "I
just came here to drive the tractor," he quipped), arrived
in the timeless Languedoc outback over ten years ago. They have
since planted Syrah, Mourvèdre, Counoise, Cabernet
Sauvignon, Viognier, Marsanne and Muscat among others, to
complement Nicole's original 1 ha/2.5 acres of cherished 1911
Carignan and Grenache Gris. The estate now amounts to over 6 ha
planted with no less than 13 grape varieties (a bit of a ner-nerdy-ner-ner
to Chateauneuf-du-Pape perhaps?); all found on a 300m/950
foot-altitude plateau composed of the meagre chalky gravel soils
that surround the tiny village of Saint-Jean, set in a stunning
remote spot between the gorges of St-Chinian and the old
Mediaeval city of Minerve (a must-visit when you're in the area).
Their signature reds Le Rendez-vous du soleil and Lo Vièlh
are made from old-vine Carignan (the above mentioned, almost 100
year old plus 1 ha planted in 1952 and relatively youthful 1970) - the RdV is
now a broader blend, by the way, see below below. John is a big fan of this
sometimes unloved variety and founder-member of a growers' group
called Carignan Renaissance, who are actively shouting about
their wines crafted from this awkward Med grape (see
www.carignans.com). The
family (there is a petit Bojanowski) also rents out the converted old
village café, a two-bedroom gîte with terrace and
quite nice view! Details are on their website below. I tasted
these wines with John on a visit in sunny but chilly late
November 2007:
2006
L'Inattendu Minervois blanc (Grenache
gris Grenache blanc,
14%) - milky and toasty with honeysuckle notes; full, rounded and
quite rich finishing with attractive bite and freshness.
87+
2005
Vous en voulez en voilà
Vin de pays Côtes du Brian (that's a local river, by the
way, rather than Monty Python homage; made from all reds except
Grenache, 13.5%) - ripe blackberry/currant, floral and spicy with
liquorice tones; rounded and fruity palate v serious edges as
well, firm and quite long.
89+
2003
Le Rendez-vous du soleil (Carignan
plus a touch of Cab Sauv)
– maturing smoky and white peppery, quite complex;
liquorice and tobacco flavoured palate, concentrated and lush
with fresh tannins and bite; very nice wine.
90+
2006
Muscat
de
Saint-Jean de Minervois
– very
floral and perfumed with white peach notes, the sweetness is
nicely cut by alcohol and acidity, so it doesn't end up so sweet.
87
2010 update:
I caught up with John and Nicole at Millésime Bio in Montpellier
(meaning they go officially organic this year) and sampled some new
vintages and new wines too. They are now distributed in the UK, US
and Canada as well as Japan, Germany, Netherlands and Belgium.
2007 L'Inattendu white (Grenache
gris, Grenache blanc)
- nutty, lightly leesy, exotic and oxidative style nose; rounded
with subtle wood tones, mature feel vs mineral touch.
87
2008 "sous les cailloux des grillons" (similar
red blend to RdVdS below plus Counoise/Terret
Gris) - lively cherry and blueberry fruit with smoky edges; juicy
and tasty with mouth-watering finish, very nice now although has
enough depth to hold back. 85-87
2007
Rendez-vous du soleil (Carignan,
Syrah, Cabernet,
Mourvèdre,
Grenache) - firmer and more savoury in style; somewhat closed
up and unrevealing yet has appealing, subtle intensity.
87+
2006 Lo Vièlh (ancient Carignan)
- developing smoky fruit with ripe blueberry notes and a hint of
tobacco; juicy vs solid with underlying sweet oak, great depth of
fruit plus enticing dry vs ripe and rounded texture, powerful yet
elegant. Needs a couple of years yet. 90+
2007 Côté obscur (Carignan) -
"I've wanted to make a wine with this name for ages!" John explained
(it does indeed mean "dark side" so start your Darth Vader heavy
breathing now): wilder, funkier and spicier aromas; lively tasty
fruit with crunchy berry vs liquorice profile, intense and long too.
89+
Clos
du Gravillas, 34360
Saint-Jean
de Minervois.
Tel: 04
67 38 17 52,
nicole or
john@closdugravillas.com,
www.closdugravillas.com.
 Château
La
Liquière
La
Liquière, all 60 ha/150 acres of it, occupies a rather picturesque
spot up on the undulating hills around Cabrerolles, the rustic Cévennes
foothills, in the northwest corner of the increasingly
exciting Faugères appellation. The Vidal-Dumoulin family's
vines, quivering across trim wavy terraces at 150-350m
altitude (500-1000+ feet) and embedded in schist, stones and clay, are in the process
of being converted over to certified organic growing. Meaning they
already are practising it, and have been for a while I believe, but
have to wait another couple of years to get the official bit of
paper (recycled no doubt). These wines were tasted in situ (in the
refurbished old-stone caveau, open usual office hours for
tastings and sales: see website below for more info) with Francois
Vidal in November 2009:
2008 Les Amandiers white Coteaux du Languedoc (Grenache
blanc, Roussanne,
Viognier, Terret,
Vermentino 13%) - floral and slightly
exotic with yeast-lees edges; quite rich and oily mouthfeel vs nice
crisp bite, balance and length. €6 85+
2008 Cistus white Faugères (Grenache
blanc, Roussanne,
Vermentino 14%) - lightly toasty and
spicy wood notes on the nose but still has plenty of lovely aromatic honeyed
fruit; juicy and crisp vs weighty, good depth and balance too. €10 87-89
2008 Les Amandiers rosé (Cinsault,
Mourvèdre,
Grenache 13%) - elegant floral cherry blossom aromas; juicier
and creamier red-fruit palate with strawberry vs crisp and
refreshing finish. €6 85+
2008 Les Amandiers red (Grenache,
Carignan, Syrah,
Mourvèdre 13.5%) - lightly smoky while very
fruity with dried fruits, black cherry and liquorice plus a touch of
black olive even; very attractive juicy fruity mouthfeel more
serious finish showing grip, crunchy fruits and bite and a bit of
weight. €6 87
2007 "Vieilles Vignes" Faugères (Grenache,
Carignan 14%) - smokier and quite
complex, very ripe then turning savoury/tobacco-ish; attractive dry
texture vs lush maturing fruit, then closes up on the finish. €8.30
88+?
2007 Nos Racines Faugères (oldest
Carignan plus splash of Grenache
14%) - rich "tar"/tobacco, ripe fruit and olive tones; pretty
concentrated yet has appealing lively side and subtle tannins, long
and quite fine finish. €11 90+
2006
Cistus Faugères (Syrah barrique-aged, Grenache,
Mourvèdre, Carignan
14%) - complex maturing fruit on the nose, turning meaty with spicy
edges; lush chunky and concentrated but again has nice balance,
firmer structure and more powerful than above vs soft dark fruit and
understated chocolate oak texture; lovely tasty lingering flavours.
€14
92+
Liquière wines are available from the Wine Society in the UK; and
via Bonhomie Wine Imports, New Jersey, Ideal Wine,
Boston, and also in California.
La Liquière, 34480 Cabrerolles.
Tel: 04 67 90 29 20,
www.chateaulaliquiere.com.
 Château
Sainte-Eulalie
Tracking the wine-themed arrows out of the village of
La Livinière up a
lane heading for Calamiac, you should find (using eyesight rather
than GPS) Château Sainte-Eulalie
lying a good bit up the hill. Isabelle and Laurent Coustal bought this
scenic estate in 1996 and
are now making flavoursome, spicy and structured reds mainly from Syrah. If you
call or email them in advance, they'll be pleased to take you on a spin around the
property, where you get a fab view from the top (225 metres/700 feet) giving a
snapshot vista of La Livinière
appellation and its assorted, undulating, contoured vineyard terrain. The
Coustal family also
rent out
a holiday cottage across the yard from the cellar, surrounded by postcard vines
it goes without saying – see
website for more info. I visited Sainte-Eulalie end of October 2008,
during
Les Grands Chemins "Rencontres en Minervois" festival,
and tasted:
2006 La Cantilène Minervois La Livinière (50%
Syrah + Grenache
Carignan, 14% alc.) - dark cherry and chocolate on the nose,
lightly toasted v rich and tasty, grippy tannins v nice 'sweet'
texture; closes up on the finish with lingering oak dominating at
the moment but this is promising and needs 6-12 months. €12
89+?
These three vintages of this wine were sampled at Montpellier's
Vinisud show back in Feb. 2004:
2003 La Cantilène Minervois La Livinière (barrel sample) -
Rich colour, spicy blackberry fruit and chocolate oak; structured
backbone layered with ripe dense fruit, elegant finish too.
89
2001 La Cantilène - Attractive maturing rustic notes mix with
tobacco and dark plum fruit, quite fine and tight showing elegant
length and concentration. 89+
2002 La Cantilène - Floral notes to the liquorice and
blackberry fruit, pure and mineral style with tight framework and
bite set against concentrated fruit. 89
34210 La Livinière.
Tel: 04 68 91 42 72/06 03 89 13 41, info@chateausainteeulalie.com,
www.chateausainteeulalie.com.
Château de Sérame
"...Delving deeper into Corbières, this huge region has been witnessing an
impressive transformation with several very serious investors on the scene.
Château de Sérame is an extensive property straddling both Corbières and
Minervois, who went into partnership with Bordeaux magnate Dourthe four years
ago. With 120 hectares in production and 10 being replanted every year, “our aim
is benchmark wines” commented winemaker Vincent Bernard..."
Read the rest
of this article. Tasted July
2006:
2003 Minervois (Syrah
Grenache Carignan
Mourvèdre) - warm blackberry and liquorice fruit with light toasty oak,
slightly 'reductive' tang and complexity; nice
soft-ish texture v depth of fruit, weight (13.5%) and chocolate coating; quite
big yet the fruit wins the day. 87-89
2004 Minervois (Syrah
Grenache Carignan
Mourvèdre) - touch more vanilla but also lively floral spice notes;
attractive juicy v fresh and tight mouthfeel, enough black cherry fruit to
absorb the choco oak; more elegant and perfumed than the 2003.
89+
2004 Corbières (variation of same grapes) - tighter more blackcurranty
fruit, again very light oak and reductive notes; nice concentration v firm
tannins, elegant and long; needs a little time to express itself.
87-89
2003 L’Icone Corbières - powerful barrel-fermented, limited series red:
pretty rich, spicy and toasty nose leads to very concentrated choco palate,
sweet fruit v solid rounded mouthfeel, actually 15% but not so obvious. Quite
wow Parker-esque style (sorry Robert for that sweeping comment), not sure I'd
want to drink more than a glass. 90 (purely
as a 'show' wine)
Domaine de Sérame
2005 Merlot Réserve, Vin de pays d'Oc - appealing plum and cherry aromas
with very background oak, good varietal character; aromatic v chunky, attractive
style. 87-89
2005
Cabernet Sauvignon Réserve, Vin de pays d'Oc - quite tangy
and tight, perhaps bottle-shocked needing a few months; it does say Cab with
less charm than the Merlot, maybe an awkward adolescence...
2005
Viognier Réserve, Vin de pays d'Oc - delicious floral apricot
notes, gummy and fresh v fatter 'sweet' fruit, clean long finish.
87-89
2005
Muscat sec Réserve, Vin de pays d'Oc - sexy pure piercing orange
peel and grape aromas build to a very zesty palate, 13.5% adds weight yet it's
long and fine. 90
 Domaine
Siméoni
Cordial
couple Sylvie and Franck Siméoni plunged themselves into
running their domaine
organically right from the start: they set up shop in the region
in 2001, after leaving jobs in the north to try and make a living
in Saint-Chinian wine country. Out of the several cuvées
they make, their La Toure (mostly 100+ year-old Carignan from
this namesake vineyard) and L'Ame des Schistes (usually Syrah and
Mourvèdre) stand out in particular for this scribbler's
palate. They also do some tasty and fun Vin de Pays varietals, quirkily
labelled with a sense of humour: a stripy Mourvèdre red
and rosé, a Syrah called La Tête à l'Envers
('head inside out' or 'wrong way round') and a Carignan Vin de
Crise ('crisis wine')!
Click here for notes on some of these,
tasted at Millésime Bio in 2006.
Commendably and
bravely (purely because it might be perceived as un-trendy or
down-market by toasted plank fans), they stopped using any wood
for ageing their wines in 2002. Other 'house secrets' include
"preferring to pick everything very ripe then do less
extraction during vinification," as Franck explained his
non-rocket-science approach. This year (2008) sees the launch of
a new chunky Syrah rosé (see below); and the Siméonis
have purchased a further 5 ha of vineyard, which is gradually
being converted to organics. If you're in the area, it's best to
make an appointment as their time is divided between
Prades-sur-Vernazobre (home/office), the cellar in
Cazouls-lès-Béziers and vineyard plots found here
and there between the two.
I
tasted these
2007
samples from the vats in Cazouls on
a sunny but chilly (especially in that cellar, not surprisingly)
late November day, 2007:
2007
Rosé
de
Syrah,
St-Chinian (14%) - delicious fruit on a crisp and zingy yet
weighty palate, very drinkable and stylish foodie rosé.
87
2007
Aramon
-
attractive
juicy boiled sweet aromas lead on to tangy redcurrant and
strawberry flavours, fresh and gluggable.
2007
Cinsault - delicious black
cherry, rounded tasty and fresh.
2007
Grenache
– gorgeous
fruit and ripe rounded mouth-feel, fair grip too with the 15%+
alcohol not so obvious (this will be blended anyway). Very
promising.
2007
Syrah + 10%
Carignan
– spicy and
vibrant showing very ripe dark cherry fruit. Good stuff.
2007
La Toure (1
ha/2.5 acres of 1898
Carignan)
– incredible colour with superb spicy blackberry and
perfumed violets, concentrated and powerful with fresh elegant
length. Wow, should be stunning after it settles down a
little.
2007 the remaining
Carignan
– crisper and
more closed up but again shows nice fruit and style.
2007
Mourvèdre
– black olive
with lively almost citrus tones, austere tannins yet it's very
fruity with chunky concentrated finish. Another future star
probably.
2001
Domaine Siméoni rouge
(their
first vintage blend aged in American oak) – maturing
savoury edges with leather and dried cherry fruit, quite
sumptuous and savoury on the finish.
89
Route
de Berlou, 34360
Prades-sur-Vernazobre.
Tel/fax:
04
67 93 78 92, mobile: 06 99 40 66 62,
simeoni5@aol.com,
www.domainesimeoni.com
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