Mazière "Grenache G" Languedoc-Roussillon, France 2022

FROM GERGOVIE WINES:

THE WINE: Mainly very old grenache, some coplanted Grenache Gris & Grenache Blanc. South east exposure, traisic soil, high elevation. Harvested ripe, long maceration, elevage in barrel and in 54l dame jeanne with some rancio blending at bottling (to bring length, light & freshness to the wine).

THE PRODUCER: Fabrice and Momoko have not been growing grapes and making wine for long. Before coming to Corbières they ran the well known wine bar and shop Les Zinszins du Vin in Besançon. After 15 years or so they decided to head to the source and came to Padern, taking over Mazière from the Labouygues family. Fabrice and Momoko recognised how special these vineyards were and were keen to continue the tradition that the Labouygues family had established in their cellar. Their two hectares of vines are made up of Grenache, Macabeu, Carignan and Syrah interspersed with some more obscure local varieties. The vines are old and planted on limestone in various expositions - as anywhere but particularly in this very hot region the exposition is key to keeping some freshness and minerality whilst the grapes are at full maturity. In the tiny cellar all work is done by gravity. The press is vertical and the barrels are old mostly Burgundian and some demi-muids.

Fabrice sometimes describes himself as an éleveur - an interesting term that is hard to translate elegantly; someone who takes care of élevage, the progression of wine from fermented grape juice onwards. Undoubtedly the vines and the work in the vineyards give a strong base to these wines but it is in the cellar that they truly take their personality. Each grape is vinified separately and each barrel ages differently. Fabrice and Momoko pay attention to each barrel and don't always top them up; the resulting oxidative notes unlock the minerality and give some of their wines a striking salinity. Having tracked the progress of each barrel, they will either bottle one barrel or sometimes will blend a few barrels together to benefit from the qualities of each one - either from the same vintage or spanning a couple of years.