Languedoc: Clos Marie, Pic Saint Loup

2006 cuvée l'olivette from this "cult-ish" Pic Saint Loup winery (Grenache Syrah and Mourvèdre). Cut to my full review (winter 2009/2010):

"Smoky and lush showing nice depth and weight, pretty chunky tannins adding dry texture and bitter twist/bite; fair oomph and grip vs dark cherry liquorice and tobacco, needs 6-12 months to come together fully. Turns a tad rustic and leather-tinged with very firm framework, but its solid trad Languedoc style seduces you in the end..."

Clos Marie

2006 cuvée l'olivette from Pic Saint Loup (Grenache Syrah and Mourvèdre). Cut to full review.

"Smoky and lush showing nice depth and weight, pretty chunky tannins adding dry texture and bitter twist/bite; fair oomph and grip vs dark cherry liquorice and tobacco, needs 6-12 months to come together fully. Turns a tad rustic and leather-tinged with very firm framework, but its solid trad Languedoc style seduces you in the end..."

Marie-Jean of Sète

Not a sexually confused Frenchwo/man but a rather nice restau, where I ate last week in the company of lots of Languedoc winemakers and fellow international journos on a trail of discovery. Sete, so to speak (doh!), right on the canal calmly watched over by rusty yet sturdy fishing boats. The raw shellfish platter to start was a feast for the eyes, if you're into something that fresh out of water, although I had a different dish (quite, although not very, tasty goats' cheese and sun-dried tom tart) as I find oysters, well, degusting, for want of a better word. Close to excellent fillet steak to follow "tasted" with a variety of Corbières and Minervois La Livinière reds. A wee bit of each one I mean...

I quite like Sète, actually, fairly horrible all around the town (the industrial porty bits, I mean, rather than the sea and hills) but cute in the centre with its lively canals and bridges. Anyway, if you're ever in town: Restaurant Le Marie-Jean, 26 Quai du Général Durand, 34200 Sète. Tel: +33 (0)4 67 46 02 01 but I couldn't find a website.