Roussillon: Château Mossé, Sainte-Colombe de la Commanderie

Jacques Mossé has trimmed his picturesque estate to around 50 ha (125 acres) having ripped up "the less good parcels," and sells off any extra wine "not considered appellation standard." The distinctive red-clay vineyards climb gently up behind the twee village of Ste-Colombe, neighbouring Thuir, and downhill towards Terrats. Jacques makes good traditional Roussillon styles, including complex aged 'vins doux naturels' (sweet fortified wines), and more 'contemporary' barrique influenced reds.

The first three wines here were tasted in his cellar on 31/1/06; there are more filed under "wines of the moment" (Mossé dry Muscat and rosé) and below. These wines are easy to find in local restaurants and wine shops, although he doesn't export that much.

2003 Côtes du Roussillon tradition (Syrah, Grenache & Carignan) - nice maturing nose, sweet and perfumed; the palate's still firmly textured, rounded out by quite concentrated fruit. €5 85+

2003 Temporis (80% Syrah aged in barriques) - spicy coconut oak aromas set the scene for lightly choco texture, good depth of fruit too; more supple than the tradition yet still structured and long. 87-89

2003 Le Carignan - appealing rustic ripe cherry aromas, lovely depth of 'sweet' fruit then firmer and more powerful on the finish. 90+ 

Tasted July 2006:

2005 Le Rosé, Côtes du Roussillon (13%) - nice chunky oily textured style, less perfumed than some but more serious on the palate; drink this with an anchovy salad. €5 85-87

Tasted summer 2007:

2006 Le Rosé, Côtes du Roussillon (13%) - similar to the 05 but a little tighter fresher and more refined even. Still a foodie rosé though. 87

Tasted June 2009 over dinner at Can Marty restaurant, Thuir:

2007 Le Rosé - still drinking well with nice ripe red fruits and oily texture v bit of weight and freshness. Pretty good with duck and steak even. 87

2008 Le Rosé...

Domaine Mossé, 66300 Sainte-Colombe de la Commanderie. Tel: Tel 04 68 53 08 89, fax 04 68 53 35 13; chateau.mosse@worldonline.fr, www.chateau-mosse.com.

Undiscovered Spain: Castilla y León

"The vast evocative Castilla & León region, which lies roughly between Madrid and the north coast stretching almost from Rioja across to Galicia and Portugal, isn't exactly "undiscovered," for Spanish wine lovers at least. Hip Ribera del Duero needs little introduction and other areas such as Toro (for reds) and Rueda (for whites), which are found to the east, south and west of Valladolid, appear to have gained some ground in the recognition stakes in the UK and US. But on this winery tour..."

CLICK HERE for the full works (at the bottom of this long Spanish archive page)...

"Saucy winery fresco @ Zamoranas"
by Brett Jones

Roussillon: Domaine du Mas Blanc, Banyuls-sur-mer

Latest HERE featuring their 2000 Vieilles Vignes Banyuls tasted with fine chocolate (December 2013)...

Jean-Michel Parcé puts together quite a diverse range of traditional reds (mostly Collioure) and Vins Doux Naturels, sourced from different plots lying in first-rate sites around the Banyuls-sur-Mer area, which usually age well - he doesn’t tend to release them until he thinks they're ready. Jean-Michel, whose winery and cellars are located right in the town centre, has been at the helm of Mas Blanc for over 30 years continuing the pioneering work done by Doctors Gaston (grandfather) and André (father) Parcé. So, a few generations of Doctors (Who?) then, for those of you who don't know them and get the tangential "joke" ((w)ho (w)ho).
On the Banyuls VDN front, he makes just about every style imaginable (and a couple more besides), which makes Mas Blanc a good place to learn something about these distinctive wines. For example, his ‘Rimage’ La Coume, built from rather old Grenache, is intensely "sweet and sour"; and Colheita-style ‘Excellence’ impressive, quirky and complex. As for Collioure reds, Clos du Moulin (the name of the vineyard, pic. above) is made from about 80% Mourvèdre supplemented by Counoise and is something of a solid meaty forte; and his half-Syrah Cosprons (again, a single vineyard site) is rich, smoky and savoury. Jean-Michel has also started producing more whites (e.g. the promising ‘Signature’ below) and rosés, as well as a few balsamic-style Banyuls vinegars (see website at bottom for details).

Spring 2009:
2008 Signature white Collioure (Grenache blanc Marsanne Roussanne & Tourbat) - exotic fruit and banana notes lead on to zesty citrus vs a touch of yeast-lees creaminess, finishing with nice fresh mineral length. €12.50 87-89
2006 La Llose red Collioure - already turning smoky and savoury with minty herbal undertones and nice cassis fruit too; tangy vs soft mouthfeel with subtle concentration, attractively lively and firm vs easy and supple on the finish. €9 87
2004 Cosprons Levants red Collioure - smoky leather touches although still a bit closed up surprisingly; maturing ripe resiny fruit vs hints of wild herbs on the palate, enticingly elegant savoury and tasty finish. €18.50 89+
2004 Clos du Moulin Collioure (mostly Mourvèdre) - meaty black olive aromas with dried fruits too; attractive elegant palate showing a lush savoury side vs firm but accessible tannins, dry yet quite fine finish. €23 89+
2005 Les Junquets Collioure (mostly Syrah) - very cassis nose although perhaps a tad reduced; cleaner palate, pretty solid at this stage with 'sweet' vs herbal fruit, tight closed up style but give it 1 to 2 years. €28 90
2006 Rimage Banyuls - oxidising meaty edges vs nice intense sweet raspberry vs dry grip all lending good balance. Still young. €21 87+
2004 Collita Banyuls - more liquoricey with dried / cooked fruits, spicy too vs firm textured, lush and sweet vs meaty leather tones. €15 88+
Cuvée du Docteur Banyuls - more oxidised with toffee and sweet nuts; oily texture vs dry grip, nice traditional style with a warming Christmas pudding finish. Just what the, erm, Doctor ordered (groan). €13 89+
1998 Vieilles Vignes Banyuls - maturing "cheesy" aromas, intricate and savoury; rich toffee vs again that dry texture, nutty and long. Yum, all comes together nicely. €30 92+
2000 Excellence Banyuls "Colheita style" - unusual nose showing toffee, banana, caramel and baked Brazil nuts with an interesting "herbal" backdrop; sweet vs structured and punchy mouthfeel with delicious "sweet & savoury" mix, dry grip vs liqueur-like flavours. Wow. €35 92-94
Hors d'Age Sostrera Banyuls ("solera" style) - really oxidised and sweet, very complex and Madeira like although more raspberry syrup; again firm palate yet minty or something too, fine mature wild cheese notes then structured and still lively finish. A one-off. €45 92+
This "bin-end" was found in a LeClerc store (north Perpignan), early summer 2009 (I assume as it was only €5 and bottled with a screwcap, so I doubt originally destined for French supermarkets):
2005 Les Piloums Collioure rouge (13.5%) - attractive mature supple style with dried, smoky, savoury fruit; lacks a bit of substance and class but quite a bargain though. 85


And this is what I said back in September 2005:
2003 Banyuls blanc (Grenache Blanc Malvoisie Muscat d'Alexandrie 16.5%) - Unusual bromide nose leads to minerally palate, finishing more Muscaty and aromatic; good balance of alcohol and residual sugar. 85
2001 Banyuls Rimage, la Coume (Grenache Noir 17.5%) - Fairly oxidised nose (intentionally) showing lovely spicy 'garrigue' fruit with perfumed wild flowers, attractive grip of tannins v sweetness with good bite and length. €38 92-94
2001 Clos du Moulin, Collioure (80% Mourvèdre + Counoise) - Lovely ripe smoky complex nose with sweet berry, liquorice, mushroom and lavender; soft v structured mouthfeel, dry texture with bite of tannin and acidity layered with rich wild raspberry fruit, subtle elegant length and concentration. 90-92
2003 Mosaique, Collioure - More up-front and straightforward than the Clos Moulin, ripe blackberry fruit then quite structured closing up a little on the finish; again shows richness v elegance v firmness. €15 87+


9 Avenue Général de Gaulle, 66650 Banyuls-sur-Mer. Tel: 04 68 88 32 12, www.domainedumasblanc.com.