2015 Puligny-Montrachet “Les Chalumaux”Comtesse de Chérisey
France | Burgundy
$120
Producers
Saint-Chinian is an unforgiving place. In the summer, the sun beats down on the steep hillsides while violent winds thunder through, overpowering all but the most tenacious shrubbery. The soil, a mix of marl and limestone, is scattered with jagged rocks that are in no way welcoming. Amid all this desolation lies Mas Champart, where the charming Isabelle and Matthieu Champart have somehow coaxed this landscape into producing one of the most elegant white wines of the south of France. Generous yet restrained, it shows layers of creaminess and tender, honeyed fruit, with pretty floral tones leading to a clean minerally finish. It will warm you up on a cold winter day just as well as it refreshes in the heat of summer. Their passion to create a great dry white is inspiring.
—Anthony Lynch
Wine Type: | white |
Vintage: | 2018 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | 50% Marsanne & Roussanne, 20% Grenache blanc, 15% Roussette, et al. |
Appellation: | Saint-Chinian |
Country: | France |
Region: | Languedoc-Roussillon |
Producer: | Mas Champart |
Winemaker: | Isabelle & Mathieu Champart |
Vineyard: | 20 years, 16 ha total |
Soil: | Marl, Limestone |
Aging: | Aged in barrel and tank, on fine lees, with light stirring, for 11 months |
Farming: | Lutte Raisonnée |
Alcohol: | 13.5% |
Mas Champart France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Saint-Chinian
Mas Champart France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Saint-Chinian
Mas Champart France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Mas Champart France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Saint-Chinian
Domaine Leon Barral France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Faugères
Domaine Vinci France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Vin de Pays des Côtes Catalanes
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.
Les Mille Vignes France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Fitou
Ludovic Engelvin France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Gard
Domaine Les Mille Vignes France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Fitou
Château La Roque France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Languedoc Pic Saint Loup
Domaine de Fontsainte France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Corbières
Les Vignes Oubliées France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Terrasses du Larzac
Maxime Magnon France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Corbières
Domaine Leon Barral France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Faugères
Domaine Leon Barral France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Vin de Pays de l'Hérault
Château Fontanès France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Domaine Vinci France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Vin de Pays des Côtes Catalanes
Château Fontanès France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Vin de Pays d’Oc
Great winemakers, great terroirs, there is never any hurry. And I no longer buy into this idea of “peak” maturity. Great winemakers, great terroirs, their wines offer different pleasures at different ages.
Inspiring Thirst, page 312
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