Our wines

Location

Nestling in the heart of the Faugères appellation, our vineyards cover just over 23 hectares on the foothills of the Cévennes overlooking the village of Laurens. The vines, planted at an ideal altitude of 180 meters, are between 30 and 60 years old and naturally produce low yields.

Grape variety

100% Carignan : the vines are over 50 years old

Soil

The soil is dominated by the sandstone schist of Laurens-Cabrières, like the neighbouring areas of the Faugérois Hills. This type of soil presents a fragile structure which is slightly acidic and can be difficult for the vines, but when treated with adapted cultivation methods, provides well balanced vines.

The climate in 2020

An early vintage, largely due to heavy rainfall in October and November 2019 followed by a very mild winter. The rains in April then stimulated a quick start to budding and great care was required to counter attacks of mildew. The hot, dry summer allowed the berries to ripen well and to remain in perfect health. The month of September was marked by a few stormy episodes which forced us to split the harvest, fortunately without affecting the quality of the grapes.

Pruning and yield

Short goblet style pruning for low yields of 25 to 30 hl/ha.

Vinification

Hand harvesting of very ripe grapes.

The idea was to create a cuvee purely from this variety, with a short maturing time to preserve the fruity characteristics.

We therefore chose to combine carbonic maceration (50%) to contribute aromatic flair and texture on the palate with traditional vinification (50%) to maintain fruity freshness and purity. We have produced 3,800 bottles of this new wine.

Tasting notes

Our work since the creation of the estate has enabled us to bring back the good old Carignan.

And this 2020 vintage expresses the remarkable potential of this grape.

A beautiful deep purple color. Aromas of black berries, Ente plums, slate and rockrose.

Fresh and full-bodied on the palate with a wonderfully rounded finish.

Temperature and serving suggestions, gastronomic alliance

Serve slightly chilled at 15-16° C with tapas, Haut-Languedoc charcuterie, wood-fired grills, truffled brillat-savarin.

About the Carignan grape variety

Carignan comes from Spain and is a traditional Mediterranean grape variety, sometimes also known as “Mataro”, “Bois dur” or “Catalan”. In the early 20th century, Carignan was the most widely planted grape in the Languedoc.

It is a late maturing variety and needs a good deal of heat to ripen. It is at its best when on the poor soils of the hillsides and when the vine is over 30 years old, producing low yields of 30 to 40 hectolitres per hectare. The resulting wines are colourful, full of character and fleshy in texture.