Critics reviews
(David Williams - The Observer - 25 Sept- 2011)
About this WINE
Viognier
A white grape variety originating in the Northern Rhône and which in the last ten years has been increasingly planted in the Southern Rhône and the Languedoc.
It is a poor-yielding grape that is notoriously fickle to grow, being susceptible to a whole gamut of pests and diseases. Crucially it must be picked at optimum ripeness - if harvested too early and under-ripe the resulting wine can be thin, dilute and unbalanced, while if picked too late then the wine will lack the grape's distinctive peach and honeysuckle aroma. It is most successfully grown in the tiny appellations of Château-Grillet and Condrieu where it thrives on the distinctive arzelle granite-rich soils. It is also grown in Côte Rôtie where it lends aromatic richness to the wines when blended with Syrah.
Viognier has been on the charge in the Southern Rhône and the Languedoc throughout the 1990s and is now a key component of many white Côtes du Rhône. In Languedoc and Rousillon it is increasingly being bottled unblended and with notable success with richly fragrant wines redolent of overripe apricots and peaches and selling at a fraction of the price of their Northern Rhône cousins.
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Description
In 1620 Bernard de Pennautier had the good sense to employ one of the chief architects of the palace of Versailles, Le Vau, to extend his already rather impressive familial home, located on the outskirts of Carcassonne. Nicolas and Miren de L’Orgeril are his tenth generation descendants all ten of whom have made wine, celebrating this unique environment. The Appellation Contrôlée of Cabardès is located at an altitude of 700-1000 metres in the southern foothills of the Montagne Noire, itself a geological and climatic cross-roads displaying both Atlantic Mediterranean influence.
Viognier from this far south needs to indulge us by maintaining its signature fleshy richness but avoiding the trap of becoming too cloying and too weighty, in other words it needs to avoid becoming a caricature of itself. What we love in Viognier can also be its downfall; so we are always vigilant. In this instance the result is impressive indeed and incidentally exceptionally good value when one compares it to the asking price of a Condrieu. Apricots and peaches, entwined by honeysuckle and hawthorn, then a fine balanced finish, exotic but not de trop. Try with scallops.
Simon Field MW, BBR Buyer, August 2011
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