ROUSSILLON
We have worked with Mas Cremat for so long - it was a real
pleasure to see Catherine Jeannin-Mongeard on our visit to her "Mas"
(Catalan for farm) overlooking the Mediterranean just north of Perpignan. We
were also delighted to bump into Olivier Varichon who many of you will remember
from his stint at The Winery. Olivier and his girlfriend Emmanuelle Vinci (who
worked at the Nicolas on the corner) bought some vines near Mas Cremat and
often help out on the estate while they get their own domaine up and
running.
Catherine moved down in 1991 with her husband (who unfortunately died
shortly afterwards) from Burgundy - she is part of the Mongeard-Mugneret clan
based in Vosne-Romanˇe.
For several years Catherine has given us big Winery favourites, the
excellent value ŅLes TamariusÓ (an equal blend of Grenache and Syrah) and its
white partner ŅLes BalmettesÓ (white Grenache and the rarely seen white
Carignan).
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white |
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Balmettes |
2006 |
7.99 |
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red |
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Tamarius |
2007 |
7.99 |
VAQUER
Mad. And very good!
In the cafˇ-less, bar-less village of Trˇsseres, barely 10kms from the
Spanish border, with a view of the snow-capped Pyrenˇes in one direction, the
sea in another, lives the Vaquer family. Fernand must be in his eighties. We
tasted the wines and asked if we could take a photo of him. He disappears for
an hour, finally emerging after a ŅquickÓ shower and change of clothes! Time moves
at a slightly different pace here. His son Bernard died tragically a few years
ago. His daughter-in-law Frˇdˇrique makes the wine now.
There are three distinct strands to the wines here.
Firstly the old stuff. Back in the early 80Õs, an oenologist friend of
FernandÕs told him he should keep his wines much longer before releasing them.
He did – so he has a spread of vintages back into the 80Õs. In our
opinion some have aged more gracefully than others, but startling when you
taste the 86 Rouge – fully mature but alive and well, a fascinating
expression of Carignan (85%) and Grenache (15%).
The second strand is the recent vintages made by Frˇdˇrique. LÕException
is a blend of Carignan, Syrah and Grenache, with big, wild fruit. LÕExpression
is 100% Carignan with a touch of oak. Sleek, with a surge of inky juice and a
fascinating lift of freshness.
The third strand is dessert wine and Vin Doux Naturels. Well-known and
highly prized in France, but little-known and undervalued outside. Many are made
with Grenache and, along with other local wines like Banyuls and Maury, are the
perfect partner to desserts involving chocolate. From a breezy, but weighty,
Muscat Rivesaltes to Prˇface, an Ambrˇ style (purposely oxidised, like sherry)
all nutty and cr¸me-brulˇe. Then thereÕs the tawny-style Post-Scriptum and
LÕExtrait a juicy, thick, late harvest Grenache Noir whose fermentation was
stopped with spirit (Mutˇ sur Grain). Finally a fabulous Vieux Rivesaltes, made
from vintages up to 22 years old using Grenache Blanc and Rouge and Maccabeu.
You can find these listed in the dessert wine section.
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red |
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Cuvˇe Fernand Vaquer |
1991 |
16.99 |
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Les Aspres LÕException |
2005 |
18.99 |
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LÕException |
2001 |
19.99 |
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Vaquer Rouge |
1986 |
22.99 |
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sweet |
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Muscat de Rivesaltes |
2007 |
14.99 |
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Rivesaltes Ņ Post Scriptum Ņ 500ml |
1995 |
18.99 |
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Vieux Rivesaltes |
NV |
19.99 |