Gascogne, Jurançon and Madiran

1 Vin de Pays des Cotes de Gascogne 2011
Domaine de San de Guilhem

Grape:40% Gros Manseng, 30% Ugni Blanc, 15% Colombard, 15% Sauvignon (11.5% alc.)

France’s best value white vin de pays, with vibrant refreshing fruit and the added bonus of low alcohol.

Click here for technical information about this wine

2 Jurançon Sec AC 2010
Domaine de Lahargue

Grape:80% Gros Manseng, 20% Camaralet (13.5% alc.)

Aromas of citrus fruits draw you in, there is a burst of fruit – ripe grapefruit and passion fruit, a nice balance of acidity and minerality from the gritty marl, then a long finish. For drinking now to 2012.

Click here for technical information about this wine

*New* 3 Jurançon Sec AC 2010 Cuvade Preciouse
Domaine Montesquiou

Grape:60% Gros Manseng, 30% Petit Manseng, 10% Petit Courbu (13% alc.)

This is Montesquiou’s top cuvée from very low yielding 40 year old vines. Sensitively aged in new to five year old barrels, the wine’s intense, exotic fruit is nicely tethered by a characteristic, refreshing acidity. For drinking now to 2015.

Click here for technical information about this wine

4 Jurançon AC 2010 Clos Thou
Henri Lapouble-Laplace

Grape:100% Petit Manseng (13% alc, 80g/l of rs)

This is Clos Thou’s top wine and only 1500 bottles of this exceptional sweet wine are made every year. Produced from minute yields of late-picked grapes that are left to shrivel on the vine (passerillage) until early December, when the snows are falling in the nearby Pyrénées. It is an intense sweet white with a cut of acidity so often lacking in other wines. For drinking now to 2017+. Sweet.

* Half bottles are available

Click here for technical information about this wine

5 Madiran AC 2006
Domaine Labranche-Laffont

Grape:60% Tannat, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc (13.5% alc.)

Two thirds of Christine Dupuy’s 45 year old vineyards produce this cuve-aged wine whose dense ripe black fruit puts me in mind of good northern spanish reds. Low yields, optimum maturity for grape picking and a gentle touch when it comes to extraction help to give the wine freshness and balance. For drinking now to 2013.

Click here for technical information about this wine

6 Madiran AC 2008 Vieilles Vignes
Domaine Labranche-Laffont

Grape:100% Tannat (13.5% alc.)

Old vines means an average age of 50 years (with one small parcel of ‘pre-phylloxera’ vines over 130 years old). The vines are pruned hard to ensure a low yield. Light pigeage is applied during the fermentation in cement cuve before one year in oak barrels (25% new). The wine has a deep blackcurrant colour, offers ripe cassis and liquorice on the nose, intense fruit with a hint of spice on the palate, and a long sustained finish. For drinking now to 2016+.

Click here for technical information about this wine