Southern Exposure
Wine, August 1998
Occupying the intriguing role of Europe's answer to the New World, wine makers in Southern France are pursuing an experimental agenda and handcrafting a new range of premium varietals. SIMON WOODS heads south
‘You can only have two bottles that, I'm afraid.' The owner one of Montpellier's fine wine shops was not being anti-British – it's just that this particular wine, a Vin de Pays de l'Hérault from Domaine de la Grange des Pères in the Languedoc, was in perilously short supply. I'd been slightly more fortunate back in England where I'd been allowed to buy three bottles of the stuff - but only because I'd bought some from the previous vintage.
Southern France is sometimes referred to Europe's New World. The rules for vin de pays, first introduced in the 1970s, mean that as long as the EU grants planting rights, vignerons can plant virtually what they want where they want, and can then make the wine however they choose. The approach taken by many was to follow fashion and plant well-known varieties such as Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Very New World, indeed, although the first wave of varietal vins de pays from the south was mostly deeply disappointing, despite the attractive price tags. However, improvements continue steadily and the current wines are far better, although still not without black spots, especially in the case of Merlot.
Some French producers, though, interpreted the vin de pays phenomenon quite differently. They realised that terroir was not something exclusive to Bordeaux, Burgundy and the more established wine regions; they began to seek out their own plots of land where they could - to use the dreadful American phrase - handcraft their own grands crus. The first and best known of these was Aimé Guibert's Mas de Daumas Gassac, 'The Lafite of the Languedoc', first planted in 1975. Others have since followed suit, including Grange des Pères, a close neighbour of Daumas Gassac.
With the latter in mind, it's easy to consider that many of Southern France's best wines are not vins de pays at all, but rather are the result of a new breed of growers who are working within the framework of the appellation system and pushing forward the boundaries of quality. Whereas previous generations concentrated on quantity and grubbed up the old low-yielding vines, today's vignerons now realise that such vines yield precisely the concentrated fruit they want, and are tending them with considerable care. Small quantities of wine made by quality-minded fanatics on a particular piece of soil, which are often available by allocation only, doesn't sound very New World at all – indeed, it sounds a little reminiscent of Burgundy.
In this tasting, the lower price limit of £5 was effective in eliminating the majority of the simple varietal vins de pays. The line-up was actually dominated by appellation d'origin contrôlée wines with vins de pays making up less than a quarter of the range. Two-thirds came from the Languedoc, with the balance split between Provence to the east and Roussillon to the southwest.
With wines ranging from the Mourvèdre-heavy wines of Bandol through the Grenache-dominated Collioure, at the opposite end of the Mediterranean coast, to 100% Merlot wines and claret-like blends, James Simpson MW was not alone when he commented: 'There was quite a difference in styles apparent, which could be confusing to consumers. These varied from New World upfront fruit to Old World subtlety and all parts in between. Some were made for early drinking, while others needed five years or more.'
'This was the usual mixed French bag,' said Charles Metcalfe. 'There were some very good Cabernet-dominated wines, as well as good Southern French variety wines. The most obvious criticism is a tendency to use too much new oak. A premium wine should be from older vines and specially favoured patches of vineyard, not just the same old stuff slapped into an oak barrel. But when it's right, I love the clear raspberry and smoky flavours. I'm sure there is some excellent value here.'
Robert Joseph agreed with the comment on oak argued that: 'Too many wines here are a) over-extracted, b) spoiled by H2S, and c) unbalanced by poor use of oak. Rusticity is the key problem. There is some good fruit behind lots of these wines, but they are let down by careless wine making.' Derek Smedley MW found 'some very good wines, but several are very over-extracted and suffering from the worst effects of carbonic maceration. This is an area which can make top-class wine but which needs more investment in wine making knowledge.'
Further technical problems arose in wines which seemed good on the nose then didn't follow through on the palate, suggesting high yields, while hard – sometimes cardboardy – finishes belied inappropriate maceration techniques and over-filtration.
Bruce Yardley was more pragmatic: 'This reinforced my general impressions that Southern French reds are well made and good value: there are few stinkers here. But there were surprisingly few really rustic wines and I have to say that by the end I was missing the wild herbaceous element.' Most agreed with Peter Cohen's overall conclusion of 'a pleasant tasting, but not a lot of high or low points. However,' he added, 'southern French producers should concentrate on their indigenous varieties rather than jump on the Cabernet bandwagon.'
I’m not sure on that last point. Southern France is akin to the New World inasmuch that no one has spent hundreds of years discovering which grape varieties will and will not work. Mas de Daumas Gassac is Cabernet-dominated, while its neighbour Grange des Pères uses Mourvèdre, Syrah and Cabernet. Both are great wines. Two wines from Mas de Bressades each received 87 points in this tasting. One, a blend of Syrah, Grenache, Carignan and Cinsault, falls into the Costières de Nimes appellation, while the other, 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Syrah, is a vin de pays. Who is to say which is better?
Producers need to concentrate first and foremost on making the best wines they can, which means more attention to detail in both vineyard and winery. If those wines then conform to the rules for a particular appellation, fine and dandy. If not, then they can be vins de pays.
Perhaps the key to deciding whether Southern France has more in common with the Old World than the New World is this: you can pick a bottle of Chilean or Australian wine off the shelf and be fairly confident that it will be of a reasonable quality; but that is not the case in Southern France. Some appellations, such as Coteaux du Languedoc and especially its subregion Pic Saint Loup, do seem to offer higher standards than others, but the producer's name is all important.
The advantage of Southern France over a region such as Burgundy is that if you do find something decent – and there were several top class wines in this tasting - you won't have to sell your Granny to be able to afford it, just her Coronation mug.
SIMON WOODS is a freelance wine writer and frequent contributor to WINE. He is co-author, with Susy Atkins, of Which? Wine Guide 1998.
87Domaine La Chevalière Cuvée Spéciale Rouge, Vin de Pays d’Oc 1995, Languedoc-Roussillon
James found this wine ‘characterful, with an appealingly sweet and sour cherry nose.’ Hamish described the perfume as a ‘balanced smell of raspberry jam’, and the palate as ‘good, rounded, appealing and soft.’ Meanwhile, Caspar noted an ‘earthy quality to the wood.’