A little over 2 weeks ago, the 2023 Languedoc U.S Road Tour came through Chicago. The dynamic and highly knowledgeable, Advanced Sommelier, Erik Segelbaum, guided us through this sunny wine region in southern France and presented a more simplified way of looking at the Languedoc and its wines. It became very apparent, after sampling many of the wines during the walk-around tasting, the Languedoc is no longer just a producer of bulk wines bound for other regions, but is producing very flavorful, authentic, wines from small winemakers and cooperatives. They are wines that will work for many occasions including Thanksgiving.
The Languedoc region receives, on average, 320 days of sunshine per per year, which is a happy thought compared to the rainy, grey weather that hits Chicago in the fall. Due to all that sunshine and the cool, dry breezes from the Atlantic wind, and warm winds from the Mediterranean in the east, there is low disease pressure, which is great for growing grapes organically. A whopping 30% of all of France’s organic vineyards are situated in the Languedoc.
What’s Old is New
The Languedoc, almost seems like an emerging region on wine retail shelves, where it is usually mixed in with red wines from the Loire, Jura and Rhone. However, wine growing has taken place in this area for over 2500 years. Erik pointed out that the region has a history of innovation. Arnaud de Ville-Neuve in 1385, discovered the process of mutage, where spirit is added to a still wine to stop the fermentation. 130 years before Dom Perignon was blending his wines to make champagne, Blanquette de Limoux was produced using the traditional method and the local Mauzac (Blanquette) grape. In 1873, Jules Emil Planchon, a botanist at the University of Montpelier, solved the disaster of phylloxera by using American grapevines (vitas ruparia, vitas rupestris) as rootstock. As recently as the 1970s, Alain Bouquet started his research at L’INRA(Institute for Agronomic Research) in Montpelier on disease resistant grape varieties.
A New Framework for Languedoc Wines
When I studied for the French Wine Scholar program, the Languedoc, and all its AOPs was a daunting area to dig into: 20 AOPS, 26 main grape varieties, and all styles of wine, still white, rosé, red, sweet and sparkling wine. Erik proposed looking at the region as 3 main climatic terroirs, Zone 1 coastal, Zone 2 the Atlantic corridor, and Zone 3 Hills and Mountains.
Coastal
The Languedoc coastal region along the Mediterranean, set between Provence to the north and Rousillon to the south, is characterized by long, warm summers with abundant sunshine (oh, how I love writing about sunny climates) and mild, warm winters. It is home to indigenous grapes such as the white grapes Picquepoul, Bourbolenc, Clairette and Muscat. Soils are a mixture of limestone, clay and sandstone. 2 wines from this region stood out at the tasting.
The first was an AOP Piquepoul de Pinet wine produced by Domaine Félines Jourdan. The AOP runs along the northern coast in the area of the Etang de Thau (Thau basin) and focuses on crisp, dry white wines using the Picquepoul (peek-pool) grape which is a word that is easy for Americans to say which leads to their buying more of the wine because they can pronounce it. The winery is run by a female winemaker, Claude Jourdan. The wine is a blend of 3 vineyard sites, Félines, along the Thau basin, La Coulette, red soils, more inland along the edge of a forest, 80m elevation and La Cadastre between the 2 sites, 45m elevation, soils chalk and pebbles. The wine was fresh, aromatic, crisp, full of lemon and white pears, a very joyful wine.
The second wine was a red that I found super delicious and one that would work well at a Thanksgiving meal. It was a classic red blend, classic for Languedoc red blends that is, of Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre and Carignan produced by Chateau Haut-Blanville , Grande Cuvée 2017, under the AOP Languedoc Grés de Montpellier in the northern coast of the region. The Carignan grape originated in Spain, but became the workhorse grape of the Languedoc, since the grape thrives in sun and produces high yields. However, in recent times, yields have been reduced and it adds color and acidity to wines and works well in blends like this Grande Cuvée where it is paired with Syrah, Grenache and Mourvèdre. The wine was dark, full of ripe black fruit, a hint of pepper, garrigue (thyme, rosemary, sage) and meat, a full body but very buoyant at the same time with a long finish. Another characteristic of the coastal zone is this garrigue character in the wine, a hint of coastal shrubs. The wine is aged for 36 months in neutral barrels. The family focuses on grape selection and specific plots of land. Incredibly, the winery is seeking a U.S. importer.
The Atlantic
The Atlantic corridor has a cool, moist climate, shaped by two winds, the crisp, dry Atlantic wind from the west and the warm, Mediterranean wind from the east. Atlantic and Mediterranean grapes thrive in this southwestern corner of the region. The soil is rocky, limestone and sandstone and wines are a variety of reds, whites, and bright sparkling wines. The Limoux AOPS , Blanquette de Limoux, Blanquette de Limoux Methode Ancestral, and Cremant de Limoux , all sparkling and centered around the town of Limoux. The Cremant de Limoux, under the Toques & Clochers label of the Sieur d’Arques Cooperative in Limoux, were particularly delicious. The Toques & Clochers label represents the top cuvées produced by the cooperative. This cremant is a blend of 50% Chardonnay, 30% Chenin Blanc, 25% Pinot Noir, 5% Mauzac. The wine had lovely aromas of white flowers, lemon and a bit of hazelnut from 9 months on the lees.
Hills and Mountains
The hills and mountain zone are characterized by a dry, hot climate in the summer and cold in the winter, with warmer days and cool nights. The soils tend to be ruffe (red sandstone), basalt and schist. Classic Languedoc red grapes, Carignon, Mourvèdre, Grenache and Syrah are grown here. The higher altitudes and volcanic subsoils create richer red wines. The growing areas tend to be around the towns of Corbiere, Faugeres and Fitou. One wine that I found particularly tasty was No. 1 , 2017, by Domaine La Cendrillon, 70% Mourvèdre (60 yr. old vines) and 30% Grenache (30 yr. old vines), maturing 24 months in small wooden vats (20 hl) and French barrels (225 hl) The wine was full of rich, dark fruit, black pepper, licorice, mocha and spice. The wine was super fresh yet complex with a long finish.
Perhaps it is the Languedoc sun, or the lack of chemical use due to the high percentage of organic vineyards. But all the wines we tasted were fresh and bright and flavorful. I think they captured some of the Languedoc sunshine in each bottle. This was a fantastic afternoon traveling by the glass to the Languedoc wine region in southern France and I hope to see more of their wines on store shelves
Traveling By The Glass 