Rediscovering French Regional Wines
I remember a conversation, a couple of years ago, with a Barolo producer who was bemoaning the fact that the majority of British wine drinkers had no knowledge of the different areas of Barolo as they did, for instance, of those of Bordeaux (or Argentina, for that matter) so that Barolo is often perceived as one, homogeneous wine. That point could be made even more strongly for the much larger area of South-West France, a region that is rapidly growing in both the number of appellations and the quality of the wines that they produce.
It’s an area that is hugely popular with us Brits, and I can’t imagine anyone who doesn’t enjoy all the various local foods and wines served up in restaurants or on the terrace of one’s holiday home, especially if sitting in the evening sun overlooking the beautiful landscapes. Yet, I also believe that most people do not seek out these same wines once home; even if they do, all they usually find is a poor example which would put anyone off spending more time on a Languedoc treasure hunt.
There is also, unfortunately, still a hangover from the past. These wines (the good stuff) were historically not shipped to Britain and so are little known. The ubiquity of the Carignan grape made them difficult drinking for those brought up on the refined tones of good claret and the reputation of Languedoc as a ‘wine lake’ has persisted, despite most of the ‘rubbish’ vines having been pulled up.
Things are changing, however, and have been for quite a while, so we thought that it might be a good idea to remind you of some of the highlights from an area that is producing outstanding wines that are very rarely overpriced.
Wines are due in mid-May-ish. Price is per case of 6 inclusive of Vat. Orders under £200 are subject to a delivery charge, otherwise free within England. There is a further 5% discount on orders of three cases or more, which may be mixed.
White
Domaine Font-Mars, Pinet, Languedoc
Picpoul de Pinet is one of my “go to” wines when I’m in southern France. Excellent with seafood, or on its own, it always hits the spot and without breaking the bank. Quality varies, of course, and whilst the larger co-operatives provide quantity, one has to look further afield to find the true essence of Picpoul de Pinet.
Over the years, Jean-Baptiste de Clock has run this lovely 8-hectare property right in the heart of Picpoul de Pinet country, 38km south west of Montpellier, very close to the town of Mèze and right by the coast. The grapes are picked manually at night when it is much cooler, de-stemmed and fermented at a low temperature for 20 days. The wine is then kept in stainless steel tanks and bottled in the January after the harvest. A perfect example of good single-domaine Picpoul with just a single gram of residual sugar left in the wine.
The wine comes in the traditional tall green bottle and is bottled under screwcap.
2024 Picpoul de Pinet – Opening Offer £83.70 RRP £89.70
Bottled in January and as fresh as can be, quite delightful. White flower, peach and citrus on the nose which carries on into the mouth. Lovely flavours, vibrant and with good, crisp acidity to balance the fruit. A perfect wine as an apéritif, or with light meals or seafood; served well-chilled.
Red
Château de la Négly, Fleury d’Aude
Situated in the village of Fleury d’Aude, in the region known as La Clape, Château de la Négly has 25 hectares under vine, overlooking the Mediterranean near Narbonne. Narbonne, by the way, is one of my favourite French towns and worth a long weekend of anyone’s time. Owner Jean Paux-Rosset and his talented consultant oenologist, Claude Gros, produce sublime, natural, unmanipulated wines from low-yielding, super-ripe, hand-picked fruit.
The vines are planted on limestone soils in sight of the sea, on what was an island a couple of thousand years ago, and benefit from cooling breezes that moderate the ripening of the grapes and without which the wines would be jammy and lack complexity. All Négly’s wines have a wonderful vivacity and freshness to them and are a delight to drink.
2022 La Côte – Opening Offer £1113.70, RRP £119.70
A blend of Carignan, Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre, usually varying between 14 and 14.5 %, yet never feels anything other than elegant and easy to drink. It’s all ripe red and black fruits with savoury undertones and spice – the tannins are silky and the acid balance is excellent. All aged in tank. Great with a meal or just a simple baguette and cheese, delightful.
Château la Bastide, Escales
I haven’t visited this lovely part of France for a couple of years now. How time flies – I really must return. The vineyards and the château, which has been there since 1770, are situated at the very northern tip of the Corbières, just to the south of the Minervois.
2021 Corbières Tradition Rouge – Opening Offer £87 RRP £93
Corbières Rouge is a blend of 60% Syrah, 20% Grenache and 20% Mourvèdre. All grapes are destemmed and then aged in stainless steel for 12 months. Terrific value for this quality. Syrah produces a lovely, rounded supple wine, aided by four months ageing on the lees. 20% of the juice is aged for twelve months in barriques.
Corbières seems to have gone out of fashion and I don’t really understand why. Yes, as with any region, and I include all countries and regions, one gets what one pays for, except, I believe, that the investment/pleasure return on these slightly out of favour French Country wines, like this lovely Corbières, is greater than most.
Château Bouscassé, Maumusson-Laguian
Alain Brumont is something of a legend in France and highly respected far beyond its borders, not only as a renowned winemaker, but also as a man whose passion has, almost single-handedly, brought the Tannat grape and Madiran wines back to life and prominence, as well as being a pioneer of quality Côtes de Gascogne wines. Alain has now been joined by his stepson, Antoine Veiry, who is bringing new ideas gained from his time working in Bordeaux and Burgundy – he is certainly a huge talent, so the estates are in good hands.
Château Bouscassé is Alain’s original family home. The soil here is different from that of Chateau Montus, which he bought in 1979, being clay, limestone and grès, a sandstone rock. The vineyards are planted with 70% Tannat, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc, all old vines aged between 60 and 85 years old.
2019 Château Bouscassé Madiran – Opening Offer £150 RRP £159
Château Bouscassé is made up of 70% Tannat, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc, picked by hand, de-stemmed, with a cuvaison of 4 weeks then ageing in one- or two-year old barrels for around 12 months.
Tannat, especially, needs some time and offers little except tannin when young, but once it emerges from its shell it all makes sense as this 2019 proves most eloquently. All in all, it’s a terrifically flexible food wine and very good value.
The 2019 Château Bouscassé, a blend of 70% Tannat, 25% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon picked at the same time and co-fermented, possesses a perfumed, fresh bouquet of dark wild berries, spices, flowers and mulberries. Medium to full-bodied, polished and fleshy, it’s layered and enveloping with a charming, seamless profile for a Madiran that segues into powdery tannins and a long, mineral finish. It demands some patience. The Wine Advocate RP 93+ Reviewed by: Yohan Castaing Release Price: NA Drink Date: 2024 – 2044
Château Montus, Castelnau-Rivière-Basse
Montus was a vision purchased in 1979 with 12 hectares and today expanded to 45 hectares. Unlike most of Madiran, the soil at Montus is similar to Châteauneuf-du-Pape, large pebbles or galets some 20in to 6ft in depth over a clay soil, and the slopes are steep. The grape varieties are 80% Tannat and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, low yields and harvesting by hand. Visually, the property is more akin to a great Bordeaux Château than the usually much more humble property found here.
2019 Château Montus, Madiran Opening Offer £203.70 RRP £210
Château Montus is a blend of 80% Tannat and 20% Cabernet Franc, total de-stemming, a 5-week cuvaison and ageing in oak for 12 months, 20% of which are new and 80% one-year old. This has more weight than the Château Bouscassé, the tannins are a little rounder – there is nothing in Bordeaux that offers as much as this wine does for a similar price.
The 2019 Chateau Montus demonstrates this property’s evolving style, exhibiting more density and seriousness without more extraction than its 2016 counterparts. It offers up aromas of loamy soils, blueberries, mulberries, spices and pencil lead, followed by a round, enveloping, charming palate with a layered core of fruit and a long, velvety and penetrating finish. This blend, consisting of 80% Tannat and 20% Cabernet Franc, showcases the roundness and fleshiness of clay soils. Keep it over the next decade and beyond. Reviewed by: Yohan Castaing 94 + points Drink Date: 2024 – 2044
Clos la Coutale, Cahors – Organic
The historic town of Cahors has been a centre of trade since Roman times – it’s not my favourite town by any means but well worth a day if one’s in the area. The wine and the river Lot, which meanders its way along the valley floor through some quite stunning rock formations and cliffs, have made me return more than once.
Cahors is the home of Cot, more widely known as Malbec, and, despite its great history, it’s odd to think that if one mentions Malbec most people these days would assume it came from Argentina. The Bernède family’s Clos la Coutale is one of the region’s oldest domaines, founded sometime before the French Revolution and today it is run by the oh so talented winemaker and inventor, Philippe Bernède. Philippe’s sixty hectares of vines sit upon the gentle slopes that rise up from the River Lot. The soil is alluvial and rich in silica, clay and limestone, and under his guidance and constant attention to detail I doubt that the estate has ever made better wine.
2022 Cahors – Opening Offer £83.70 RRP £89.70
Philippe has gradually change the blend to what it is now – at times the Cot could make for an overly rustic wine, certainly before it had some time in a cellar, so now the wine is made from 80% Cot/Malbec and 20% Merlot; the character of the Cot is still there, elegant, earthy – but its rusticity has been toned down, the tannins are softer and rounder now. It’s a super wine, full of character and flavour and a bit of a bargain. Drink or cellar,
Domaine Clément Lavallée, Saint-Bris-Le-Vineux
Brilliant Wines from a Rising Superstar in Chablis The prices shown are under bond UK, not all wines are available now.
Domaine Clément Lavallée, Saint-Bris-Le-Vineux
Every so often, one comes across a new producer that stands out from the crowd, and significantly so at that. Clément Lavallée is one such producer who, I believe, has the potential to become something of a superstar. He is definitely one of the most exciting producers from the new generation in Chablis, although his story is not unusual these days: he wanted to do things differently to his father, started up a new domaine from scratch in 2019, just 1.6 hectares of Chablis, then added 3.4 hectares of vineyards in Saint-Bris and Côte d’Auxerre until, in 2021, his father retired and he now has 14 hectares which he manages with his sister Caroline. The whole operation is run along the lines of minimal intervention – chemicals and insecticides are not used and treatments are minimal. It was interesting to see that in the vineyards they use older tractors, which are lighter and thus compact the soil less – perhaps a return to horses will be next, they wouldn’t be the first. Only the finest pressings are used, the rest being sold off in bulk. Aging is in old oak barrels and stainless steel to allow the wine, rather than the wood, to talk. I love these wines, they are expressive, focused, vibrant and beautifully balanced. He has produced brilliant wines in 2013 and I can’t recommend them highly enough.
The followings wines are offered per 6 x 75cl Under Bond UK only. Prices exclude duty and Vat and any potential delivery costs. All orders are subject to final confirmation. The wines will be shipped later in 2025. These wines are of quite exceptional quality but equally limited supply.
Bourgogne Aligoté “Pariot” – £108
Clément maintains his attention to detail and focus on quality even with his supposed ‘lesser’ wines. The result is an immensely enjoyable wine that transcends the Aligoté appellation. Mouth-watering acidity underpins ripe white fruit flavours creating a harmonious whole that keeps you coming back for more. Perfect as an apéritif, but would be great on a picnic or with light summer meals – shellfish, grilled fish or cold roast chicken, for instance.
Saint-Bris “Les Copains d’abord” – £129
“Friends first”, and this is clearly intended to be fun, but what fun! Many years ago, I used to sell an excellent Sauvignon de Saint-Bris, but since then it has rather dropped out of the collective consciousness and when I tried this wine I realised that I had been guilty of overlooking the region too. Now, I’m asking myself, Why? This is such a stimulating wine it has made me fall in love with Sauvignon again. A different style of wine, with a recognisable but restrained Sauvignon flavour and with a slight unctuousness about it, but held in check by the vibrant acidity which produces a taut, nervous and very long finish. Great for just sharing a glass with your mates, but would also show off lightly sauced fish or roast pork. In a word, excellent.
Bourgogne Côte d’Auxerre Blanc “Grand Roche” – £129
A buttery, hazelnut Chardonnay with ripe white fruit and delicate citrus notes, this is real Bourgogne Blanc with all the flavour one could hope for. Medium weight on the palate with a delicacy and refinement all its own. Once again, outstanding balance and a long, clean finish. Drink however and whenever you want.
Chablis A.C. – £141
Delightful! As pure an expression of Chablis as you could want. White flowers and ripe white fruit on the nose, with a minerally palate that is perfectly balanced and has that ‘Chablis feel’. Precise, focused and long.
Chablis Les Ardillers – £162
From a single vineyard of shallow clay soils in Courgis, this is already starting to show its character. More intense, with a higher acidity and a deeper flavour than the ‘village’ Chablis, it is a really dynamic and exciting wine with a very long finish. I was lucky enough to try the ’22 with a few oysters, and it was perfect. This looks even better.
Chablis 45° – £162
Named after the 45° slopes of very poor white clay soil it is grown on. This is still a little closed at the moment, but has more weight than the Ardillers with a deep, nutty flavour and an even longer finish. All, of course, with the trademark Lavallée balance. It will be gorgeous. Makes me think of sole, turbot, veal chops and fricassées of chicken (I could go on).