SOUTH-WEST FRANCE
South-West Francethe final frontierwell not
quite, but certainly packed with mysterious appellations like Gaillac,
Marcillac, the Cotes du Brulhois, Fronton, Montravel.
Familiar-sounding Bergerac may be right next door to
Bordeaux, have the same grape mix and the same geology but it is remarkable how
different the wines taste.
SAINT-GUILHEM (Fronton)
Just to the North-West of Toulouse is the recently
named appellation of Fronton where they are supposed to feature the rather light,
herbal grape called Negrette. Toulouse has historically drunk rivers of the
stuff. There is nothing light about the Saint-Guilhem wines we tracked down.
There may or may not be Cab Sauv or Syrah in some of former Teacher and Estate
Agent Philippe Laduguie's wines. our lips are sealed.
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red |
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Tradition |
2004 |
7.99 |
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Amadeus |
2004 |
9.99 |
Amazing things are happening in Cahors. It's a magnet for new winemakers looking for old vines and fascinating
terroirs. Firstly we looked on the valley floor and found the boisterous couple
Jean and Marie Delserieres of Chateau Cerinne
which is less a chateau than a bungalow. They make classic, honest Cahors with
no filtering or fining. She was hysterically funny, all nods and winks, making
her husband think he was the boss. We, and he, all know the truth!
Parisien Architect Stephane Azemar and his wife
Veronique call their estate "Clos d'Un Jour".
That crazy dream is now a reality. Stephane had been looking for a way to make
a Cahors with the oxygenating benefit of oak but without the oak flavour - and
decided to have some terracotta amphora made. He said it was hard to find a
local potter with a kiln tall-enough. How does his amphora wine taste? Juicy
and modern. Oak influence without the oak!.
Then it was cross-country to Marcillac - via an excellent dinner at the Vieux Pont in Belcastel, a picturesque
village with no mobile telephone signal.
We tasted all the benchmark Marcillac we could find.
Made from the alarmingly vegetal Fer de Servadou - we only got excited when we
rolled up at Eric and Claudine Costes'
door. As well as making a small amount of bright, unpretentious wine, they run
a Gite, an Auberge and farm ducks and chickens. Which put us in the mood for
lunch.
LARROQUE (Gaillac)
From Gaillac, North-East of Toulouse, at Domaine
Larroque we encountered weird grapes - Mauzac, Brocol, Duras, all sorts!
Patrick Nouvel makes punchy, feisty wines, and even have the classic
Gaillac bottle shape, which is also slightly weird. Weird but wonderful!
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sweet |
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GAILLAC
DOUX |
2004 |
8.50 |
MANOIR-EMEILLE (Tarn)
Even though we had to get to the Airport, Charles
Poussou of Manoir-Emeille insisted on pouring us every one of his vast range of
wines, occasionally stopping to serve local Gendarmes who had come to buy wine
for the weekend. We were glad we got as far as his Cotes du Tarn Rouge, a
cheeky, slightly autumnal Jurancon, Duras and Syrah blend - we just had to
drive a bit quicker.
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red |
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VIN
DE PAYS DES COTES DU TARN ROUGE |
2005 |
4.99 |