"Order my book on the Roussillon wine region (colour paperback) DIRECT FROM ME SAVING £4/€4 (UK & EU only), or Kindle eBook on Amazon UK. Available in the USA from Barnes & Noble in hardcover, paperback or eBook; or Amazon.com. For other countries, tap here." Richard Mark James

01 April 2011

Roussillon: Domaine des Chênes, Vingrau

When a small group of us called in on Alain Razungles just outside the village of Vingrau on the hot sunny morning of 5th September 2006, they were picking the first bunches of Carignan - some of the vines at least 90 years old - at his 30 ha (75 acre) domaine. It sits serenely in one of the most breathtaking spots you'd ever imagine finding vines, despite a ten year struggle to stop some indifferent multinational from turning the area into a dirty great mine.
The 'cirque de Vingrau' is edged by steep, rough limestone cliffs and hills, actually an outer limb of the Corbières, located about 30 km northwest of Perpignan. It's a haunting place where you feel isolated yet surrounded and like you're being watched; and not surprisingly popular with rock climbers. Alain has planted "quite a bit of Syrah," the youngest of which "is too productive at the moment for my best wines." Relatively speaking: yields in this wild terrain aren't large. Plantings rise from 130 to 400 metres (400-1250 feet) altitude, which could explain why he has 50% white grapes, very unusual in the area, as they retain nice fresh acidity on higher ground. Varieties include old Grenache gris & blanc and Roussanne introduced from the northern Rhone.

I bumped into Alain, whose 'day job' outside of the family estate is professor of winemaking and viticulture at Montpellier University, by the way, again in March 2011 up in funky Faugeres country, where he gave a rapid running-late lecture and tutored tasting on flavour chemistry and profiles to a hungry thirsty audience of journos, local winegrowers and politicians! Interesting though, as was the geology and history demo out in the vineyards beforehand, and we tried some lovely wines: more on that here.

2005 Les Olivettes vin de pays d'Oc (Muscat Macabeu Grenache Blanc) - lightly aromatic with clean mineral palate, refreshing acidity and intensity v weightier yet elegant length. 87+
2003 Les Sorbiers Côtes du Roussillon (Grenache Blanc Macabeu, 14%) - aged 6 months in oak: light toast and cream with spicy celery notes v fat milky mouth-feel and apricot fruit, yet fresh acidity on the finish. 90
2004 Les Magdaléniens (Grenache Blanc Roussanne, 13%) - richer and more buttery with honeysuckle fruit, again fresh mineral acidity; aromatic qualities help balance the toastiness. 88
2005 Festa Major rosé Côtes du Roussillon (mostly Syrah, 13%) - lovely creamy raspberry fruit v white pepper tones set against crisp mineral texture; delicious. 87-89
2004 Les Grands-Mères vieilles vignes Côtes du Roussillon Villages (mostly Carignan, 13%) - a bit
reductive/sulphide on the nose? Cassis and plum fruit comes through with a spicy chocolate layer, seems to lack generosity but it's rather closed up on the finish; not sure...
2004 Le Mascarou, Côtes du Roussillon Villages Tautavel (Carignan Syrah Grenache, 14.5%) - smokier and meatier, spicy cassis fruit leads to a firm tight and fresh finish; needs time, very promising. 89-91
2003 La Carissa, Côtes du Roussillon Villages Tautavel (Syrah Grenache Carignan Mourvèdre, 14.5%) - sumptuous aromatic spice with light cedar tones, nice black fruit concentration v fresh bite and elegant intensity. 90-92
2004 Muscat de Rivesaltes - richer very grapey style yet retains that hallmark freshness and mineral character, attractively full and sweet v lively cut on the finish. 90
2001 Rivesaltes Ambré - aromatic baked walnut with
volatile complexity, very intense and long, good balance of sugar and alcohol. 92-94
2001 Rivesaltes Tuilé - attractive leather notes and black plum, rich mouth coating v fresh bite, powerful yet sweet and tannic. Woof. 90
L'Oublié Rancio sec (Macabeu 13.5%) - literally one barrel forgotten about for 4 years (actually 95 vintage): dry Amontillado style, old & oxidised yet fresh tangy and very long.
90

Domaine des Chênes is stocked by Lea & Sandeman in London. You'll find them in situ at 7 rue du Maréchal Joffre, 66600 Vingrau. Tel: 04 68 38 92 01.

Languedoc: Faugères focus


Photo by Bernard VIDAL
A load of old schist?

French wine-growers and -makers sometimes get rather excited about soil and its place at the root of wine appellations, although many of these are so large and sprawling with such a variation in/variety of soil types (especially across vast wine-lands like the Languedoc), that it can get a little too geological, tiresome even, to follow/swallow all that "terroir" talk narrowly focusing on this aspect alone. Ever read one of those not-very-helpful traditional back labels (you’re lucky if there is one for a start) on a bottle of French wine? “…Clay, limestone, big pebbles, millions of years, Romans (aah!) blah blah…” What’s it actually made from then (call me new-fashioned, but grape variety does impart some character to a wine, surely?) and, erm, taste like? Oh, that’s a secret of the “terroir”…
Anyway, Faugères, a relatively small wine region covering approx. 2000 hectares (5000 acres) lying to the north of Béziers, is fairly unique in this respect, as a sort-of "cru" appellation or ‘newly’ coined and rather meaningless “Grand Vin du Languedoc,” as it's mapped out across an area largely dominated by schist soils. Hence, the Faugères appellation is neatly hemmed in by the villages of Cabrerolles (including the hamlets of Aigues Vives, La Liquière & Lenthéric) and Caussiniojouls to the west, Faugères itself in the north, Fos and Roquessels to the east and Laurens and Autignac in the south.
Geologists aside, English speakers don’t usually understand what you mean when you say “schist” - I guess as there isn’t any in the UK or US, for example (could be wrong there but no desire at all to delve deeper)? In this Languedoc neck of the woods, the distinctive soil - can be quite big lumps of layered flaky ‘rock’, looks a little like slate but much softer and crumblier as it’s essentially a kind of compacted dried-out clay - is mostly brownish orange with grey/blue veins deeper down. Whereas the schist you see around Collioure and Banyuls-sur-mer, for instance, is often redder still and it’s grey or black even in the northern Roussillon. They’re well-schisted too in parts of Corsica, the Valais region of Switzerland and Priorat in Catalonia. Something to do with the formation and collapse of the Pyrenees, which once (100s of millions of years ago…) swept right across the Mediterranean and beyond. So I’m told.
Does all this really matter? Well, there is sometimes something distinctive about Faugères’ wines, flavour and structure-wise, and the quality level is generally quite high. It also gives you an excuse to come and see their bold, beautiful and schist-laden wine-lands for yourself, with its spectacular vine-contoured hillsides, especially around pretty Cabrerolles and Caussiniojouls. And the idea of bringing together a like-minded band of winegrowers, as they have done in the guise of a schisty association to promote themselves, sounds like a good one. More info on the Faugères wine trail, called “nature schiste” in French, and other wine & food events in the area at faugeres.com. By the way, interesting to note the number of wineries below that are organic or in the process of, which probably isn’t a coincidence: if soil matters, don’t kill it, as they say...
This post is the first in a series of reports and winery profiles from five intensive days spent at the “Languedoc Millésimes” tastings in the region (21-25 March 2011), where I had the chance to taste mostly 2010, 2009 and 2008 vintages. As well as, more importantly and more fun, meet and talk to Faugères winemakers and try (drink/enjoy even; woops, not v. pc) some of their older wines too. I’ve used my ‘new’ scoring system of one, two or three ‘ticks’ (good, very good, fabulous); or just plain 1 to 3 here, if you get my drift. Euro prices are cellar door per bottle inc. taxes, added a week later so didn’t influence my notes (if it makes any difference).

FAUGERES white 2010

Domaine Ollier-Taillefer “Allegro” (Roussanne & Rolle=Vermentino, estate converting over to organic) – milky vs estery with yeasty edges, gets cleaner and more mineral/crisp vs some fat and medium weight. Bit at sorts but potential? 1 €9.40
Domaine du Meteore “Les Léonides” (Roussanne & Marsanne, estate converting over to organic) – aromatic and lightly peachy/apricot, chalky/zesty mouth-feel with nice crisp/bitter touch vs juicy fruity. Not bad length. Bit reductive still but does last. 1 €6.90
Château de la Liquière "Cistus" (Roussanne, Grenache blanc & Vermentino; estate converting over to organic) - more perfumed vs oily and fat vs greener side, very light toasted backdrop vs nice fruit and crisp intensity/length. 1-2 €11.40
Cave Coop du Cru Faugères "Terrasses du Rieutor" (Roussanne, Grenache blanc & Marsanne) - toasty/creamy notes vs quite zesty, some exotic fruit vs chalky texture, finishes a bit clunky and "hot". €6.90
Les Amants de la Vigneronne "Soif de Toi" (Grenache blanc & Roussanne) - pretty oaky, some attractive juicy underneath but... €8.50

FAUGERES rosé 2010

Domaine du Meteore “Les Léonides” (Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah, Carignan, Mourvèdre) - a tad yeasty but nice rose petal aromas + red fruits, closes up on itself with crisp bite. Not sure? 1 €6
Domaine du Rouge Gorge (Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah) - lively raspberry redcurrant and strawberry style, zingy and fresh vs juicy fruit. 1 €4.75
Domaine Esteve (Grenache, Cinsault) - weightier style with a touch of oily texture vs nice pink fruit and crispness, fairly intense finish. 1 €5


Mandatory vineyard outfits in wacky Faugères schist country, from faugeres.com
FAUGERES red

Mas Anjel "Prestige" 2009 (1/3 Grenache, Syrah, Carignan; organic) - up-front jammy fruity nose with perfumed liquorice, nice fruit vs subtle dry tannin backdrop, attractive mix of drink now and more serious grip and length. 1+ €14
Domaine de Cébène 2009 “Les Bancèls” (Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre; estate converting over to organic) - sweet cherry fruity nose with aromatic wild herbs, strawberry and peppery edges; solid grippy palate vs lovely fruit and nice rounded tannins. 1.5-2 €14
Domaine Saint-Martin d'Agel “Cuvée Faugères” 2009 (Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Carignan) - bit reduced and lean, tannins tad dry vs fruit but could just be not showing well. Kick too. €6.50
Cave Coop "Parfum de Schistes" 2009 (Syrah, Grenache, Carignan) - quite simple sweet fruit vs tobacco touches, tannins bit clumsy but it's OK. €6.50
Domaine Cottebrune "Parole de Berger" 2009 (Syrah, Grenache) - scented oak but not too much, blackberry fruit underneath, oak textured tannins add smoother finish vs fair concentration. 1 €18
Domaine Cottebrune "Transhumance" 2009 (Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre) - closed nose, similar oak but more ingrained adding nice texture vs more concentrated and grippy, closes up. Could be good. 1.5 €13
Les Amants de la Vigneronne "Le Rouge aux Levres" 2009 (Grenache, Syrah) - vanilla oak notes, quite a lot actually vs fair depth and grip and some sweet fruit. Tad forced perhaps but good power and concentration. 1.5 €8.50
Les Amants de la Vigneronne "de Chair et de Sang" 2009 (Mourvèdre, Syrah) - oakier still and tad extracted. €12.50
Domaine de Cébène "Cuvée Felgaria" 2009 (Mourvèdre, Syrah, Grenache) - wild herb and tobacco notes, lovely spicy fruit and intensity, nice rounded vs dry tannins and plenty of that peppery vs sweet fruit. Yum. 2-3 €30
Mas des Capitelles "Vieilles Vignes" 2009 (Mourvèdre, Syrah, Carignan; estate converting over to organic) - herbal/reductive tones although some nice perfumed herby and liquorice and black cherry, good depth and grip in the end. 1+ €7.60
Château des Peyregrandes "Marie Lacreusie" 2009 (Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Carignan; estate converting over to organic) - bit glue-ish on nose, lacks charm? €12.60
Domaine Balliccioni "Kalliste" 2009 - bit closed, again hard-ish finish and not v. charming at the moment.

Domaine des Prés Lasses "Chemin de Ronde" 2008 (Grenache, Syrah, Carignan, Cinsault, Mourvèdre; estate converting over to organic) - spicy perfumed liquorice with underlying savoury leather tones, fair grip and fresh bite vs nice ripe dark fruit. 2 €9.50
Domaine de la Reynardière "Tradition" 2008 (Syrah, Grenache, Carignan, Mourvèdre) - maturing oily sweet perfumed and herby fruit, liquorice pepper and black cherry too; nice tannins vs turning sweet & savoury fruit, quite elegant and crunchy/refreshing too. 1.5-2 €5.10
Domaine de la Reynardière "Prestige" 2008 (Syrah, Carignan, Grenache, Mourvèdre) - similar profile yet more intense and richer even, very attractive sweet vs peppery fruit and firm vs ripe tannins, long finish. 2 €7.20. Great value for money too, this guy.
Domaine Thibault/Esteve et Fils 2008 (Grenache, Syrah, Carignan) - dirty/reduced character? Something underneath but a bit hard too... Would like to try it again. €5.50
Château de la Liquière "Vieilles Vignes" 2008 (Grenache, Carignan, Syrah, Mourvèdre) - tangy blackcurrant, reductive or unripe even? Complex though with sweet herbs and spice, touch of vanilla oak vs nice depth berry fruit and firm vs round tannins. 2? €9.60
Domaine de Cébène "Cuvée les Bancèls" 2008 - similar nose, nicer fruit palate with maturing oily touches, peppery and black cherry; quite punchy/hot on finish vs firm vs bit of sweet & savoury. 1 €14
Domaine Ollier-Taillefer "Grande Reserve" 2008 (Grenache, Carignan, Syrah) - resin-y maturing raisin nose and palate, rounded texture fruit/tannins, drinking well now although has bit of punch and grip on its fair length. 1.5-2 €8.60
Calmel+JJoseph 2008 (Syrah, Carignan, Grenache) - quite complex reductive?/herbal/garrigue nose, liquorice and raspberry with sweet & savoury notes; nice fruit vs elegant touches, quite grippy though vs oily softening fruit. 1.5 €8
Château de la Liquière "Cistus" 2008 (Syrah, Carignan, Grenache, Mourvèdre) - again enticing perfumed wild herby notes plus rich sweet fruit and pepper, chunky dark cherry depth vs fine tannins; overall very nice wine and lasts too. 2.5-3 €15.20
Domaine de Cébène "Cuvée Felgaria" 2008 (Mourvèdre, Syrah, Grenache) - lovely intricate nose, herby and minty even vs developing sweet & savoury fruit; subtle oak texture and choc vs cherry fruit, concentration and oomph vs elegance (although a tad hot in the end maybe). 2 €30
Domaine Ollier-Taillefer "Castel Fossibus" (Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre) 2008 - cassis and herbal tones with subtle concentration, underlying fresh acidity even and firm but nice tannins. Somehow lacks a bit of charm though. 1.5? €13
Domaine de Fenouillet/Jeanjean 2008 (Syrah, Grenache) - enticing sweet berry and spice on the nose, quite chunky cherry and choc palate with attractive texture, peppery vs liquorice on the finish with a touch of tannin/acid bite. 2 €4? Value!
Cave Coop "Mas Olivier Expression" 2008 (Syrah, Carignan, Grenache, Mourvèdre) - quite big and soupy mouthful, fruity vs grippy, nice enough although hardly fine. 0.5 €8.95
Château de Ciffre "Grand Vin" 2008 (SGM) - grainy oak aromas move on to OK fruit, bit lean. €15.60
Château de Ciffre "Terroirs d'Altitude" 2008 (SGM) - maturing and sweet-ish, okay although lacks character. €9.90
Domaine des Prés Lasses "Castel Viel" 2008 (Grenache, Carignan, Syrah, Mourvèdre) - subtle fruit vs underlying oak, a bit closed up but it's concentrated and quite fine, tight finish. 2 €17

Unfinished cask/vat samples:
Domaine de Cébène 2010 “Les Bancèls” - delicious black cherry/berry fruit with some earthy savoury edges, quite chunky palate and tannins but nice balance. Promising. 2
Domaine Alquier 2010 - nice juicy fruity style, fairly straightforward but attractively chunky and rich. 1
Cave de Faugères “Parfum de Schistes” 2010 - choco barrique edged vs lush and spicy dark fruit, grippy and structured (and a tad extracted) but again concentrated with lingering sweet herby notes. 2
L'Ancienne Mercerie "Petites Mains" 2010 - tight and structured vs lovely lush ripe oily fruit, power and grip vs sweetness and wild spice edges. 2
Les Fusionets - bit baked (happens with cask samples + air) vs chunky black and savoury edges, closes up, quite firm vs concentrated again. Try it again.
Mas des Capitelles 2010 "La Catiede"? - sweet berry fruit and herbs tinged with vanilla oak, grippy and structured with fair concentration though. Again try it again.
Domaine Balliccioni "Kalliste" 2010 - oak dominated (obviously), quite extracted and punchy with lush dark underbelly. Not sure. 1+

31 March 2011

Roussillon & Languedoc: "wine, food, people, places..." New blog by Richard Mark James

French Mediterranean Wine

This new blog (takes you to it, new window) will include all my Roussillon, Languedoc and other loosely 'southern' French themed material previously published on WineWriting.com (work in progress...), plus the latest stuff, of course, posted as and when from now on. The idea is to create a lively stand-alone site dedicated to this wild wine region featuring:
Roussillon diaries: "My slowly mushrooming winemaker guide to French Catalonia stretching from Maury to Rivesaltes, Perpignan to Collioure and Banyuls-sur-mer via Les Aspres (that's the bit in the middle). 100+ winery blurbs and 950 wines tasted..."
Languedoc profiles: "A logical step to give these 100+ sampled estates their very own fifteen minutes of Languedoc fame... with 700+ wine reviews..." Originally split up into bite-size chunks like this: Coteaux du Languedoc "zones" - Corbières & Fitou - Faugères, Saint-Chinian & Minervois - Limoux, Cabardès & Malepère - Vins de Pays Oc etc. - Sommières & Nîmes.
Wine tasting & travel features: new / archive articles and posts originally published on WineWriting.com or in Decanter and various other magazines and websites. As well as, to help enhance the French Catalan - Occitan - Mediterranean flavouring, any hot or quirky news items worth sharing, south of France restaurant and food tips, my French "wines of the moment" and all that jazz...

Languedoc "Millésimes" tastings

Coming soon: a series of pieces from the Languedoc, where I spent five days last week tasting 2010, 2009 and 2008 vintage (mostly, plus quite a few older reds) wines from several different appellations and some exciting producers too. With a touch of wild-side hiking (Pic Saint Loup), historical cycling (the Midi canal) and good eating (e.g. resto/wine bar tips in Montpellier and Carcassonne) thrown in too.
First up: Faugères focus, a load of old schist? (see above).

30 March 2011

Deja-vu blog posts

I've imported about 50 Roussillon & Languedoc themed blog posts from WineWriting.com 2 and re-published them below this one, to enhance the French Catalan - Occitan - Mediterranean flavouring, appearing in their original date order.
And all 200+ winemaker "profiles" from my Roussillon "French Catalonia" pages and Languedoc winery guides, which were originally published on WineWriting.com (1650+ wine reviews and growing...), will also be teleported onto this blog and posted individually approx. at the same point in time as before. To locate these, see "blog archive" month by month in the right hand column or A to Z listing of profiled estates in the "more wine words" section, where you'll already find lots of magazine and web articles as well.
All new Roussillon & Languedoc blurbs will now be published on this blog, along with any fresh and entertaining wine tasting & travel features on the region, news items, south of France restaurant tips, "wines of the moment" etc. As and when. So, please bear with me during the transition process...
Richard Mark James

White of the mo: Santamaria, Corsica

Domaine Santamaria 2010 white from Patrimonio (main variety: Vermentino, 13% alc.) - enticing milky lees notes vs appley then peachier fruit, lightly creamy palate vs zesty with refreshing bite vs rounder finish. Also tried their rosé and red, which were okay but their white’s the star.

25 March 2011

Languedoc: Domaine Barroubio, Saint-Jean-de-Minervois

I've enjoyed Barroubio's wines on numerous occasions; the first one directly below was 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), at the Chai de Port Minervois - Homps (a wine shop that holds tastings too):
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 the 08 vintage tasted in March 2010 with pud at La Distillerie restaurant in Saint Marcel sur Aude (goes to review post of that fine establishment):
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.

Most recently, there are several more Muscats (dry, sweet, grappa...) and a splendid 2010 rosé, tasted in March 2011, lurking on this blog here: Languedoc: Minervois & Muscat. Which concludes nicely that nice Mr. Barroubio is indeed one of the Languedoc's leading Muscat specialists! However, as I said, that lively rosé goes to show he's more than a one trick pony, although I wasn't that mad on one of his reds I tried over dinner in Carcassonne on the same trip, but it could have just been blown away by the hugeness of the cassoulet (that lardy classic duck and pork cooked in white beans and goose fat)!

More stuff at: barroubio.fr

11 March 2011

Elegant but not arrogant Frog

The Arrogant Frog label, made by "the Humble Winemaker" aka Jean-Claude Mas of Domaines Paul Mas based near Pézenas in the Languedoc, has been around for a while and now adds up to quite a range of whites, reds and rosés from the wild south. I picked up a bottle of 2010 Elegant Frog Viognier the other day on offer at Sainsbury's for £5.99, which I guess is a branch-off, exclusive label kinda thing. I've tasted Mas' straight Viognier, and blends with Chardy or other varieties, over many vintages and the 2010 confirms they know how to make this not-everyone's-cup-of-tea grape sing nicely. Its slightly exotic perfumed side gives you enticing up-front apricot, peach and sweet-spice notes, which is countered by a zesty and white peppery edge; quite full and rounded too at 13.5% alcohol; yet has an underlying lively zing to it. Try with Chinese dishes - e.g. something stir-fried with ginger or spicy duck even - or a "medium strength" prawn curry. More info @ arrogantfrog.fr or arrogantfrog.fr/blog.
Loads more Mas HERE (on French Med Wine.com from 2004 to 2011).

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Header image: Château de Flandry, Limoux, Languedoc. Background: Vineyard near Terrats in Les Aspres, Roussillon.