Picpoul de Pinet is doing well. Production has doubled since 1990. We have never really quite understood why this wine from Languedoc has become so popular. Good marketing is certainly one reason. The wine has a good reputation as an unpretentious seafood wine. And now it will soon have its own appellation, AOP Picpoul de [...]
Tag Archives | Languedoc
Britt’s Wine of the Month: Terrasses du Larzac 2011, Mollard & Fillon, Languedoc
Packed with dark berries, quite soft and easy-to-drink but with good structure and freshness and a spicy after-taste that reminds me of the syrah grape. And syrah is one of the grapes, the others are grenache, cinsault and carignan. Mollard & Fillon is a new small wine company run by Nicolas Mollard and Sébastien Fillon. [...]
We are all French, aren’t we?
The usual infighting between French appellations… Renaming the French table wines to Vin de France was an ingenious move. They were formerly called vin de table, wines without geographical origin. “France” is a brand name that goes down well in most countries and big wine firms with a flair for marketing have been quick to [...]
Faugères 2010 Les Premières, JM Alquier & Mas Cal Demoura L’Infidèle 2010 | Britt’s Wine(s) of the month
These are two high quality wines from the Languedoc. Both are elegant, complex and very drinkable. Faugères 2010 Les Premières JM & Vé Alquier (14 euro) Quite light in style, full of aromas, well made with freshness, fine acidity and length. The talented wine maker Jean-Michel Alquier, well known for his cuvées La Maison Jaune [...]
Two not so new video interviews: Domaine de Nizas and Chateau Saint Jacques d’Albas
Sometimes one is not so diligent as one should be. Apparently. I happened to find two video interviews that we have made quite some time ago but that have not been published on BKWine TV, i.e. the section on BKWine Magazine dedicated to videos. Here are the two interviews: Interview with Arnaud Deville manager of [...]
A holiday tip: a gîte in the Languedoc at Domaine Terres Georges
This is perhaps a little late in the day (or early?), but who knows, perhaps you have some vacation left, or want to do something this autumn or want to plan for next year? Domain Terres Georges is a small (very small) wine producer run by Anne-Marie and Roland Coustal, a young couple. It is [...]
Everything you have ever wished for from the Languedoc
“Everything” is perhaps (for sure) a bit of an exaggeration. “We have a big hole in our wine cellar. Or so it seems. We need to refill the spaces on the shelves so that we have something to drink for dinner. We have always had a soft spot for the wines from the Languedoc so [...]
Graham Nutter of Chateau St Jacques d’Albas, interview | BKWine TV
Interview with Graham Nutter of Chateau St Jacques d’Albas. Graham acquired Château Saint Jacques d’Albas some seven years ago, as the realisation of a long-time dream of becoming winemaker. Graham has invested heavily in the property and in the soil to make it a premier example of a quality wine producer in the Languedoc region [...]
Domaine de Nizas, Languedoc, interview with Arnaud Deville | BKWine TV
Interview with Arnaud Deville manager of Domaine de Nizas, a vineyard in the Languedoc region in France, a little bit north of Pezenas and close to Caux. The Domaine de Nizas vineyard was created by the Franco-American John Goelet who also owns Clos du Val in California (manged by Bernard Portet) and Taltarni Vineyards in [...]
A treasure trove of Languedoc wines: Cave du 41 in Nimes | BKWine Pick
We have a big hole in our wine cellar. Or so it seems. We need to refill the spaces on the shelves so that we have something to drink for dinner. We have always had a soft spot for the wines from the Languedoc so my thoughts wandered off to a wine shop we visited [...]
Britt’s Wine of the Month: Ares Blanc 2010 from Le Conte des Floris in Languedoc
Le Conte des Floris is a small, high quality estate in Languedoc, in the village of Caux, close to Pezenas. Daniel Le Conte des Floris is a relative newcomer to the business, he started his vineyard in 2000, but he is a quick learner. His wines are superb and here I would like to highlight [...]
“Together we are strong“ say the wine co-operatives, some stats
Wine cooperatives are strong in France and especially in Languedoc-Roussillon where you find 70 % of them. Here are some interesting figures from the Fédération des Vignerons Coopérateurs Languedoc-Roussillon (Languedoc-Roussillon accounts for approximately 35 % of the total production of wine in France): 210 cooperatives 20 000 members 5400 employees 1200 million euro in turnover [...]
The co-operatives in Languedoc compete – Coup de Coeur des Femmes Journalistes
To have a “coup de cœur” in French means that you instantly fall in love with something, it could be anything, for instance a wine. In the wine competition “Coup de Cœur des femmes journalistes” female journalists are supposed to find their coup de coeur among award-winning wines made by some of the many co-operatives [...]
Britt’s Olive of the Month: Lucques
I could not help but to nominate an “olive of the month” after having tasted the green olive “Lucques” by the cooperative L’Oulibo in Bize-Minervois. Lucques has a characteristic, elongated shape and should preferably be enjoyed au naturel, with nothing added but water and salt. This way you really feel the flavours of the olive. [...]
Château Saint Jacques d’Albas, Minervois, Languedoc | BKWine Pick
Château St Jacques d’Albas in Laure-Minervois is run by Englishman Graham Nutter and his French wife Beatrice. They came here a few years ago, “when everything was in ruins” and now they have a beautifully renovated 80-hectare estate in the heart of Languedoc. We first got in touch with Graham about five years ago and [...]
Mesdames-Messieurs Restaurant, Montpellier | BKWine Pick
The focus of Mesdames-Messieurs is clearly on the wine. And on organic – and similar – wines in particular. They call themselves “bar à vin dînatoire”, essentially a wine bar with something to eat too, and that is a fair description. Mesdames-Messieurs Restaurant is not quite a fully fledged restaurant. The wine selection, which is clearly [...]
Interview with Mas Gabinele in Languedoc (Faugeres)
Found in a dusty corner (on YouTube) a video that we had done quite some time back but that has never been published on BKWine TV on the site. It is an interview with Thierry Rodriguez, a wine négociant that some years back also created his own winery in Faugeres and Saint Chinian. He has [...]
Southern flavours from 21 producers
A selection of quality wine producers from the Vinisud wine fair Just a few weeks after Millésime Bio (which we wrote about in the last issue of the brief), it was time for Vinisud, also in Montpellier. Vinisud is held every two years for three days around the 20th of February and this year was [...]
Three Faugeres wines from Domaine Binet Jacquet
Domaine Binet Jacquet is a small organic and biodynamic wine producer in the Languedoc. It is in the sub-region called Faugeres that is inland, close to the Cevennes mountains. It is a remote an empty landscape and the soil is dominated by schist (slate). Magnus Reuterdahl, who writes for BKWine Magazine, recently had the opportunity [...]
Three Faugeres wines from Domaine Binet Jacquet
Domaine Binet Jacquet is a small organic and biodynamic wine producer in the Languedoc. It is in the sub-region called Faugeres that is inland, close to the Cevennes mountains. It is a remote an empty landscape and the soil is dominated by schist (slate). Magnus Reuterdahl, who writes for BKWine Magazine, recently had the opportunity [...]
Mas Gabinele in the Faugeres, Languedoc | BKWine TV
An interview in French with the founder, Thierry Rodriguez, of the Mas Gabinele wine estate in Faugeres in the Languedoc. This is quite an old video, but that apparently we have not previously published it here. It is actually one of the very first I made, back in 2007. In short on Mas Gabinele: 10 [...]
Restaurant Le Petit Jardin, Montpellier restaurant | BKWine Pick
It is not easy to find one’s way around Montpellier with its medieval winding narrow streets. But there is hardly any chance that you loose your way so thoroughly that you wander past the Restaurant Le Petit Jardin by accident. It is in a tiny little alley very close to the Arc de Triomphe just [...]
Primitive French zinfandel?
According to Vitisphere the French CTPS (Comité Technique Permanent de la Sélection) recently published a new list of permitted grapes varieties in France. New on that list is Primitivo, the star grape of Apulia in southern Italy. It is being recommended for Languedoc-Roussillon which seems reasonable. A few years ago they approved the Spanish Tempranillo. [...]
A memorable wine lunch in Languedoc
We were fortunate (you have to create your own luck!) to have a magnificent lunch and wine tasting at the wine tour we recently organised in the Languedoc-Roussillon. This district certainly merits becoming much better known among wine lovers: they make great wine and it is spectacularly beautiful. The small group of wine lovers that [...]
Millesime Bio – the organic wine fair
Millésime Bio is a wine fair that is entirely dedicated to organic wines. All exhibitors must be certified organic (or in conversion). In addition, all producers are allocated exactly the same space: everyone has a table to present their wines, so in a sense it is an uncommonly “democratic” wine show without any big and [...]
“Honey, I bought a vineyard!”
Not everyone has 50 million euros to spend on a vineyard. One of the most cost efficient districts in which to buy a vineyard is the Languedoc in the south of France. Although they make some outstanding wines there today the land prices are often moderate. And weather is nice! Anders Åberg is a Swede [...]
Grand Cru and Bordeaux wine from California? Easier than from the Languedoc!
From what it seems the silly initiative to create Languedoc Grand Crus have failed. In California things are much simpler. You just put Grand Cru on the label and voilà, you are a Grand Cru. At least, that is what Bob Davids has done at his Sea Smoke vineyards in Santa Rita Hills in Santa [...]
The big wine fair ViniSud on February 20-22, 2012
The focus of the Vinisud wine fair is the wines and wine regions around the Mediterranean. The show takes place in Montpellier in the south of France so the French wine producers are of course well represented. But many producers from the other countries in the Mediterranean basin are also there. Many of the exhibitors [...]
“Honey, I bought a vineyard!”
Not everyone has 50 or 100 million euros to spend on a vineyard (as was recently the price tag for Ruffino). One of the most cost efficient districts in which to buy a vineyard is the Languedoc in the south of France. Although they make some outstanding wines there today the land prices are often [...]
The story of Domaine Turner Pageot – a small winery in the Languedoc
Domaine Turner Pageot is a very small wine producer in the Languedoc, in the little town of Gabian. It was created by the husband and wife team of Emmanuel Pageot and Karen Turner, he from France and she from Australia. Emmanuel runs the vineyard and winery while Karen spends most of her time working as [...]
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