2019 Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Superiore “Capovolto”La Marca di San Michele
Italy | Le Marche
$27
Producers
The south of France may be known primarily for its reds and rosés, but it is home to distinctive and outstanding white wines, too. Made from a medley of southern white grape varieties, Mas Champart’s Saint-Chinian blanc is one of the region’s most fascinating and delicious blancs. The 2019 harvest arrived late in Saint-Chinian and allowed the Champarts to preserve even more acidity and freshness than usual. Mineral and saline, with impressive texture and flavors of citrus, stone fruit, and spring flowers, this offers a great pairing for grilled fish or seared scallops.
—Tom Wolf
Wine Type: | white |
Vintage: | 2019 |
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: | 14.3% |
Mas Champart France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Saint-Chinian
Mas Champart France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Monts de la Grage
Mas Champart France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Saint-Chinian
Mas Champart France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Saint-Chinian
Mas Champart France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Vin de Pays d'Oc
Mas Champart France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Vin de Pays d'Oc
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.
Ludovic Engelvin France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Gard
Domaine de Fontsainte France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Corbières
Mas Champart France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Saint-Chinian
Domaine La Tour Vieille France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Collioure
Mas Champart France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Saint-Chinian
Domaine Les Mille Vignes France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Vin de Pay de l’Aude
Domaine de Fontsainte France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Corbières
Domaine Leon Barral France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Faugères
Domaine Leon Barral France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Faugères
Château La Roque France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Pic Saint Loup
Les Vignes Oubliées France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Terrasses du Larzac
Mas Champart France | Languedoc-Roussillon | Vin de Pays d'Oc
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
Drinking distilled spirits, beer, coolers, wine and other alcoholic beverages may increase cancer risk, and, during pregnancy, can cause birth defects. For more information go to www.P65Warnings.ca.gov/alcohol
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