Notify me
2016 Faugères MAGNUM
Domaine Leon Barral
The first time I tasted Domaine Leon Barral’s Faugères—before I knew much about Didier Barral, who named the domaine for his grandfather—I experienced a coup de foudre. It wasn’t really because of the wine’s succulent notes of mixed red and black fruit, spices, and leather. It wasn’t even that it was somehow simultaneously rustic and graceful, dark and light on its feet. Instead, I fell in love with Barral’s Faugères because of the raw, primal feeling the wine gave me: specifically, the desire to go hunting with my uncle in the backwoods of Maine and sip this soulful red by a campfire, far away from city lights and social media.
Some time after, I discovered that Didier is our last producer to work off the grid, with no cell phone, no email, and no computer. He gardens and raises cows and pigs on his property an hour west of Montpellier. The animals fertilize the soils, trim competing vegetation, and eventually feed Didier and his family. Most importantly, he farms biodynamically, with a zealous devotion to biodiversity, creating an ideal habitat for his vines and all the life around them.
Incredibly, the wine had communicated a love of nature on its own, before I knew any of this. I therefore recommend that you open a bottle of the 2016 Faugères in the outdoors. Take it on your next camping trip or fishing excursion, or at the very least, open it in your backyard and leave your phone inside.
—Tom Wolf
Wine Type: | red |
Vintage: | 2016 |
Bottle Size: | 1.5L |
Blend: | 50% Carignan, 30% Grenache, 20% Cinsault |
Appellation: | Faugères |
Country: | France |
Region: | Languedoc-Roussillon |
Producer: | Domaine Leon Barral |
Winemaker: | Didier Barral |
Vineyard: | 40 to 70 years, 14 ha |
Soil: | Schist |
Aging: | Aged for 2 years in cement and stainless steel cuves |
Farming: | Biodynamic (practicing) |
Alcohol: | 14.3% |
More from this Producer or Region

2019 Faugères “Jadis”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Earthy, meaty, savory, juicy, and powerful, it is a glassful of joyful, soulful goodness.

2019 Faugères “Valinière”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Valinière is a monumental demonstration of what happens when respectfully working the earth is not just a job, but one’s whole life.

2022 Saint-Chinian Rouge “Sortilège”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Full of freshness and detailed elegance, with not a hint of rusticity.

2022 Terrasses du Larzac Rouge
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
This wine marries the sunny influence of the south with chewy mountain tannins and a fresh streak of cool stone.

2020 Faugères “Jadis”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Earthy, meaty, savory, juicy, and powerful, it is a glassful of joyful, soulful goodness.

2021 Pays d’Hérault Rouge
Domaine de la Grange des Pères
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Grange des Pères defies categorization and redefines greatness.

2022 Vin de France Blanc
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Searching for something a bit funky to enliven your jaded palate? Look no further and prepare for an experience like none other.

2021 Vin de France “Le Carignan”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Old vines give this Carignan a supple, suede-like texture, along with loads of dark fruit, a peaty smokiness, and great minerality.

2019 Faugères
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Simultaneously rustic and graceful, dark and light on its feet, this red shows succulent notes of mixed red and black fruit, spices, and leather.

2023 Languedoc Blanc “Cuvée Sainte Agnès”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Evokes citrus rind, herbs, and sea spray and boasts all of the freshness of a Mediterranean breeze.
About The Producer
Domaine Leon Barral
Didier Barral represents the 13th generation to grow grapes in the tiny hamlet of Lenthéric, deep in the heart of the Languedoc. Domaine Léon Barral is a beacon of revolutionary winegrowing: shortly after founding the domaine, Didier decided that biodynamic practices were best for his 30 hectares of vineyards. His vines are very old—some up to 90 years of age—keeping yields naturally low. Once in the cellar, Didier’s harvest is cared for with the same zeal, though he would consider the wine all but finished once it leaves the vineyard. This level of artisanship was once nearly extinct, had it not been for Didier and the profound influence he has over viticulteurs who now see how his work ethic and ideology translates to results.
About The Region
Languedoc-Roussillon
Ask wine drinkers around the world, and the word “Languedoc” is sure to elicit mixed reactions. On the one hand, the region is still strongly tied to its past as a producer of cheap, insipid bulk wine in the eyes of many consumers. On the other hand, it is the source of countless great values providing affordable everyday pleasure, with an increasing number of higher-end wines capable of rivaling the best from other parts of France.
While there’s no denying the Languedoc’s checkered history, the last two decades have seen a noticeable shift to fine wine, with an emphasis on terroir. Ambitious growers have sought out vineyard sites with poor, well draining soils in hilly zones, curbed back on irrigation and the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, and looked to balance traditional production methods with technological advancements to craft wines with elegance, balance, and a clear sense of place. Today, the overall quality and variety of wines being made in the Languedoc is as high as ever.
Shaped like a crescent hugging the Mediterranean coast, the region boasts an enormous variety of soil types and microclimates depending on elevation, exposition, and relative distance from the coastline and the cooler foothills farther inland. While the warm Mediterranean climate is conducive to the production of reds, there are world-class whites and rosés to be found as well, along with stunning dessert wines revered by connoisseurs for centuries.
More from Languedoc-Roussillon or France
2023 Pays d’Oc Blanc “Les Traverses de Fontanès”
Château Fontanès France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Pic Saint-Loup Rouge
Château Fontanès France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Vin de France Blanc “Malvoise”
Château La Roque France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2018 Vin de France “Grenache Oxydatif”
Domaine Ludovic Engelvin France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2021 Vin de France “Le Carignan”
Domaine d’Aupilhac France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2020 Faugères “Jadis”
Domaine Leon Barral France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Collioure Rouge “Puig Ambeille”
Domaine de la Tour Vieille France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Cap de Creus “Ranci Sec”
Domaine La Tour Vieille France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2020 Gard Rouge “Clausus”
Ludovic Engelvin France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Saint-Chinian Rouge “Sortilège”
Les Eminades France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2019 Faugères “Valinière”
Domaine Leon Barral France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2021 Pays d’Oc Rouge “Les Vieilles Vignes de Mourvèdre”
Château La Roque France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2023 Pays d’Oc Blanc “Les Traverses de Fontanès”
Château Fontanès France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Pic Saint-Loup Rouge
Château Fontanès France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Vin de France Blanc “Malvoise”
Château La Roque France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2018 Vin de France “Grenache Oxydatif”
Domaine Ludovic Engelvin France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2021 Vin de France “Le Carignan”
Domaine d’Aupilhac France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2020 Faugères “Jadis”
Domaine Leon Barral France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Collioure Rouge “Puig Ambeille”
Domaine de la Tour Vieille France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Cap de Creus “Ranci Sec”
Domaine La Tour Vieille France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2020 Gard Rouge “Clausus”
Ludovic Engelvin France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Saint-Chinian Rouge “Sortilège”
Les Eminades France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2019 Faugères “Valinière”
Domaine Leon Barral France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2021 Pays d’Oc Rouge “Les Vieilles Vignes de Mourvèdre”
Château La Roque France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Where the newsletter started

Where the newsletter started
Every three or four months I would send my clients a cheaply made list of my inventory, but it began to dawn on me that business did not pick up afterwards. It occurred to me that my clientele might not know what Château Grillet is, either. One month in 1974 I had an especially esoteric collection of wines arriving, so I decided to put a short explanation about each wine into my price list, to try and let my clients know what to expect when they uncorked a bottle. The day after I mailed that brochure, people showed up at the shop, and that is how these little propaganda pieces for fine wine were born.—Kermit Lynch