A dose of La Clape

Childish humour aside, there are two new Languedoc "winery snapshots" featuring Château Camplazens and Château Pech Redon; both found on "the curious hunk of untamed hilly rock that is La Clape" between Narbonne and the sea. Talking of which, I just spent a couple of days at some mammoth 2009 vintage "en primeur" tastings of lots of Languedoc wines, including several rather good white wines actually (it's perhaps best known for its reds) from this compact and distinctive sub-appellation. Round of applause then (get it, ho ho?). Full report on those Languedoc 09s here, and more info on Camplazens and Pech Redon by clicking on those links...

A dose of La Clape

Childish humour aside, there are two new Languedoc "winery snapshots" on WineWriting, the site, featuring Château Camplazens and Château Pech Redon; both found on "the curious hunk of untamed hilly rock that is La Clape" between Narbonne and the sea. Talking of which, I just spent a couple of days at some mammoth 2009 vintage "en primeur" tastings of lots of Languedoc wines, including several rather good white wines actually (it's perhaps best known for its reds) from this compact and distinctive sub-appellation. Round of applause then (get it, ho ho?).
Full report on those Languedoc 09s is on my other blog HERE. And follow these links for more info on Camplazens and Pech Redon...

Dances with vines

Dancing in the vineyard might sound like something the more eccentric among our biodynamic winegrowing friends occasionally indulge in, but slighty avant-garde Languedoc winery Le Chemin des Rêves is organising dancing lessons "en pleine nature" (in the middle of nowhere rather than taking your clothes off, I'd imagine) among their vines in Combaillaux not far from Montpellier. This will be run by Sylvie Klinger on Sunday 21 March from dance group "Noun." So pull on your Syrah-coloured dancing shoes and "do it large" (as they used to say in Manchester, England) to the Grenache/Mourvèdre remix... More info @ www.myspace.com/association_noun or www.chemin-des-reves.com, who've just opened an on-site groovy-looking log-cabin tasting room/shop, by the way.

Dances with vines

Dancing in the vineyard might sound like something the more eccentric among our biodynamic winegrowing friends occasionally indulge in, but slighty avant-garde Languedoc winery Le Chemin des Rêves is organising dancing lessons "en pleine nature" (in the middle of nowhere rather than taking your clothes off, I'd imagine) among their vines in Combaillaux not far from Montpellier. This will be run by Sylvie Klinger on Sunday 21 March from dance group "Noun." So pull on your Syrah-coloured dancing shoes and "do it large" (as they used to say in Manchester, England) to the Grenache/Mourvèdre remix... More info @ www.myspace.com/association_noun or www.chemin-des-reves.com, who've just opened an on-site groovy-looking log-cabin tasting room/shop, by the way.

Languedoc: Domaine Magellan, IGP / Pézenas

Why vin de pays? The village of Magalas is indeed very Languedoc found just south of the Faugères appellation yet was never "classified" within the so-called "Coteaux du Languedoc," for no doubt a variety of odd, political and/or ultimately probably not very interesting reasons. Until 2008 that is, the first vintage to be "delimited" as such and hence Bruno Lafon and Sylvie Legros' quite sumptuous Grenache Syrah wine below, sourced from a hilltop plot lying on the Pézenas-zone side of their vineyards. Another reason, and their original guiding philosophy actually, was that Bruno (from the Lafon Burgundy family) and Sylvie could experiment with the whole gamut of varieties (a dozen) planted across their undulating terrain, which includes e.g. Merlot and Tempranillo among the usual Med and Rhone grapes, based on "one terroir, one wine". Over 10 years later, their thinking is now more "Chateauneuf" than Burgundy; and it's the subtle blending of complementary varieties, all sourced from essentially two very different, although neighbouring "terroirs" (Pech Redon: sandstone and pebbles, Caves de Paris: clay and cobblestones) that create the most complete wines in the south. Having done a quick tour through their vines with Sylvie back in March 2010, it is remarkable how the soil, slopes etc. change from one spot to another, as is often the case in larger Languedoc vineyards. By the way, Le Fruit Défendu is an easy-drinking range based on some old Cinsault, for the red and rosé, that was selected from Chateauneuf-du-Pape in the 60s and they were advised to rip up but decided not to (technical consultants, huh)!

2008 Magellan white (Grenache blanc, Roussanne 14%) vin de pays de l'Hérault - attractive honeyed oily notes vs spicy and a touch toasty vs quite rich and buttery; nutty and crisp vs powerful, nice balance in the end despite that initial punch! 87
2009 Fruit Défendu rosé (Cinsault, Syrah) vin de pays Côtes de Thongue - mouth-watering and crisp with rose petal tones and light red fruits; clean, gummy and easy finish. 80-83
2009 Fruit Défendu white (Grenache blanc, Muscat) - aromatic nose vs rounder and juicy palate; crisp and mineral with honey and melon flavours. 83-85
2009 Fruit Défendu red (Cinsault, Syrah) - appealing juicy cherry and liquorice fruit; peppery palate with light grip and nice blackcurrant finish. 80-83
2008 Magellan Coteaux du Languedoc (Grenache, Syrah) - lovely vibrant minty nose with spicy black cherry and liquorice; attractive fresh bite and "chalky" tannins, tight long and balanced finish. 87+
2007 Magellan red (Grenache, Syrah, Carignan) vin de pays de l'Hérault - smokier and richer yet still minty with wild herb and berry notes, "sweet" liquorice and savoury edges too; grippy with lingering maturing fruit, big but very tasty. 89+
2005 Alios (Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre + Tempranillo etc.) vin de pays de l'Hérault - enticing savoury maturing nose with dried black fruit edges; good mix of ripe and raisin-y vs solid and meaty, quite complex and interesting flavours with herby vs savoury profile, big finish and fairly firm tannins still. 90+?

Latest vintage tasted here (2009 Coteaux du Languedoc Pézenas, May 2011).

467 Avenue de la Gare, 34480 Magalas. Tel: 04 67 36 20 83 / www.domainemagellan.com.

Languedoc: Château Meunier St-Louis, Corbières-Boutenac

Château Meunier St-Louis

Martine and Philippe Pasquier-Meunier have over 20 years experience behind them to bring out the best of their sizeable 120 ha estate (300 acres). The white varieties are also all 20+ years old, which is probably one factor behind the latent quality of their attractive "Prestige" white wine, grown on "pebbly quartz sandstone terraces," as you do! The reds are at slight altitude as well but on stoney clay-limestone sites, so there. Their top cuvée "Exégèse" is sourced from "the prettiest hills" (someone once said if a vineyard is beautiful, it must be good!) lying in the northernmost tip of the Boutenac appellation zone and selected grapes including their oldest Carignan. I tried these wines over dinner (10th March 2010) with Martine (among other Boutenac and Minervois owner/winemakers) at Le Marie-Jean restaurant in Sète (that link goes to a post on my other blog), and at the Languedoc "en primeur" tastings that week (see link below):

2009 Prestige rosé Corbières (Syrah, Grenache, Carignan) - elegant and very crisp, attractive and versatile style. 83-85

2009 Prestige white (Grenache blanc, Bourboulenc, Marsanne, Rolle = Vermentino) - aromatic banana/pineapple notes with gummy lees-tinged intensity; nice rounded mouth-feel vs light bitter twist, "sweet" fruit vs mineral bite. 87

2005 Exégèse Corbières-Boutenac (Syrah, Grenache, Carignan) - quite oaky, sturdy and extracted with lush spicy fruit vs grainy wood; not sure at first, in the end the fruit comes through more although it's still pretty chunky, firm and tight for an 05. One to try again sometime...

2009 Exégèse (Syrah/Carignan/Grenache) - smoky bacon oak with ripe fruit and wild herb undertones; dry vs rounded tannins with minty finish. Good but far too expensive at €32! 87+  (unfinished sample from my 2009 Languedoc report).

UPDATE: more here (May 2011, Corbières report).

Saint-Louis, 11200 Boutenac. Tel: 04 68 27 09 69, www.pasquier-meunier.com.

Languedoc: Château Hauterive le Haut, Corbières-Boutenac

Château Hauterive le Haut

Fabienne and Jean-Marc Reulet's expansive 90 ha (225 acres) of vines spread across four different zones: on the clay-sand soils around Boutenac, clay-limestone Caumont Cayenne hillsides, clay and sandstone around the Boutenac pine-forest and the Hauterive vineyard itself in Gasparets. I tried these wines over dinner (10th March 2010) with the owner/winemaker at Le Marie-Jean restaurant in Sète (that link goes to a post on my blog), and at the Languedoc "en primeur" tastings that week (see below):

2009 Corbières rosé (Cinsault/Syrah/Grenache)- raspberry fruity and quite chunky style with juicy and crisp finish. 85

2007 Corbières-Boutenac (old Carignan/Grenache) - very nice smoky savoury touches vs vibrant cherry and berry fruit, a tad of oak adding rounded texture vs quite concentrated palate. 89+

2009 Averal (50-50 Carignan/Grenache) - perfumed herby aromas, leading on to tobacco tones and blue/black fruits; crunchy vs ripe palate with lively length. €13.50 88+ (unfinished sample included in my 2009 Languedoc report ).

11200 Boutenac. Tel: 04 68 27 62 00, reulet.6mablog.com.

Languedoc: Château Faîteau, Minervois La Livinière

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 (read on for more updates). 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, Château Cesseras and Sainte-Eulalie.

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 2008, 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 from vineyardsdirect.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 mini review), 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.