portfolio ➜ origin ➜ France
Roussillon
Categories: Maury, Rivesaltes, Rancio Sec/Vi Ranci, Red Wine, Quinquina/Chinato, Banyuls
Now incorporated into the greater Languedoc-Roussillon region, Roussillon has always had a distinct identity, culturally and geographically. The region begins in the dark hills of the Pays Cathare to the north, where the French Midi and Aude department give way to the Pyrénées-Orientales. Mount Canigou and the eastern Pyrénées serve as sentinel to the west; the Mediterranean Sea to the east, with a small, fertile plain around capital Perpignan between them. Part of the Kingdom of Majorca until 1659, its people are Catalan, sharing a language—as well as culinary and wine traditions—with their brethren south across the Spanish border.
Roussillon is the warmest and driest of all French wine regions, and the vine is one of few crops that can survive the heat and the Tramontana wind that rages across the landscape. Vineyards were planted by the Greeks as early as 500 BC, and were further developed by the Romans. Today, Roussillon is simultaneously one of France’s most traditional and dynamic wine regions, producing exciting white, rosé and red wines—including Collioure—while honoring the legacy of the Rancio Sec and the Vin Doux Naturels (Rivesaltes, Banyuls, Maury) which are its patrimony.
Quinquina/Chinato
Byrrh Grand Quinquina
France ➜ Roussillon 18.0% ABV
18.0% ABV
Byrrh Grand Quinquina is made to the original late-19th century recipe that earned worldwide fame and inspired fifty years of evocative poster art. Byrrh combines a generous, port-like wine and mistelle base with a firm backbone of natural quinine to produce a fruity, refreshing aperitif by itself, with tonic and a twist, or paired with blue cheese. In cocktails, Byrrh mixes well with vodka, gin, cognac, tequila, Irish whiskey, and grapefruit. Byrrh is produced in Thuir, in the heart of French Catalan territory, near the coast and border with Spain. Full details
Red Wine
Domaine du Mas Blanc Collioure ‘Les Junquets’ 2000
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Collioure AOP 12.7% ABV
12.7% ABV
One of three single-vineyard Collioure “crus” produced by Domaine du Mas Blanc, ‘Les Junquets’ comes from a steeply-terraced, west-facing parcel of the region’s celebrated schist soils. Vinification is traditional: Old-vine Syrah and a small section of Marsanne and Roussanne (which together comprise 10% of the blend) are hand-harvested from miniscule yields, trodden by foot and fermented in stainless steel with native yeasts. Matured in old Bordeaux barrels for at least one year, this wine boasts great dimension and savory mineral depths, with notes of cassis, smoked venison and garrigue herbs underscored by a telltale iodine signature. Enjoy with all manner of roasted game, porcini mushroom or risotto. Capable of continued improvement over the next 10-12 years. Full details
Domaine du Mas Blanc Collioure ‘Clos du Moulin’ 2000
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Collioure AOP 13.4% ABV
13.4% ABV
One of three single-vineyard Collioure “crus” produced by Domaine du Mas Blanc, ‘Clos du Moulin’ comes from a 1.8-hectare plot, southeast-facing, on the banks of the river Baillaury. The soil is schist mixed with gravel and sand. Vinification is traditional: Mourvèdre and Counoise (10%) are hand-harvested from goblet vines, trodden by foot, and fermented in stainless steel with native yeasts. Matured in old Bordeaux barrels for at least one year, ‘Clos du Moulin’ is simultaneously dark and brooding, carnal and oceanic. Notes of blackberry, dried blood, cured tobacco, tapenade, violet and bay leaf speak to the grandeur and savagery of this unique terroir. Enjoy with spit-fired lamb, smoked duck and truffles. Capable of continued improvement over the next 12-15 years. Full details
Rancio Sec/Vi Ranci
Abbe Rous ‘Matifoc’ Rancio Sec NV
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Côte Vermeille IGP 16.5% ABV
16.5% ABV • Fully Oxidized, Oxidative
A wine of ancient tradition, Abbé Rous ‘Matifoc’ Rancio sec is produced from old-vine Grenache noir and is aged outdoors in old 600-liter Banyuls demi-muids for up to four years before returning to the cellars for continued oxidative aging. The resulting wine is a blend, with an average age of 10-12 years in partially-filled barrels, resulting in its inimitable rancio character. Full details
Terres des Templiers Rancio Sec NV
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Côte Vermeille IGP 16.5% ABV
16.5% ABV • Fully Oxidized, Oxidative
Terres des Templiers Rancio Sec descends from an ancient tradition preserved by Catalan winemakers of the Côte Vermeille. From old-vine Grenache noir found on its schist-dominated, terraced vineyards overlooking the sea, the wine is first aged out-of-doors in old demi-muids before returning to the cellars of the producer for extended oxidative aging in old Banyuls casks. The wine is a blend with an average age of 10-12 years spent in partially-filled barrels, resulting in its pronounced rancio character. Full details
Tresmontaine ‘Puits aux Souhaits’ Rancio Sec NV
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Côte Vermeille IGP 15.5% ABV
15.5% ABV • Fully Oxidized, Oxidative
Tresmontaine ‘Puits aux Souhaits’ Rancio sec is the last produced under the auspice of the late winemaker, Bernard Sapéras, who kept it mainly for family and friends. Made from Grenache noir vines with an average age of 70 years and a yield of just 20 hl/ha, it was fermented in old casks over the course of several years before coming to rest in barrels first used for the domaine’s Banyuls blanc. The average age of the blend is 10 years. Full details
Domaine de Rombeau Rancio Sec 2010
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Côtes Catalanes IGP 16.5% ABV
16.5% ABV • Fully Oxidized, Oxidative
The lightest of the Rombeau Rancio secs, the 2010 is distinguished by its cepage and its shorter elevage, with an increased percentage of Macabeu and, atypically, a small amount of Muscat à Petits Grains (roughly 10%) added to the foundational Grenache blanc and Grenache gris. Vinified in tank with native yeasts, then transferred to an assortment of old barrels, foudres and glass demijohns for 12-18 months aging outdoors. A portion is then returned to the cellars, which rest above ground and lack temperature control, while another portion remains in the "barrel forest" outdoors until the time of blending and bottling. Full details
Domaine de Rombeau Rancio Sec 2009
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Côtes Catalanes IGP 16.5% ABV
16.5% ABV • Fully Oxidized, Oxidative
The 2009 Rombeau Rancio sec is the most complete and balanced of the Rombeau Rancio secs, displaying the pronounced umami funk of 2008 with the lighter touch of 2010. It was vinified in tank with native yeasts, then transferred to an assortment of old barrels, foudres and glass demijohns for 12-18 months' aging outdoors. A portion is then returned to the cellars, which rest above ground and lack temperature control, while another portion remained in the "barrel forest" until the time of blending and bottling in mid-2016. Full details
Domaine de Rombeau Rancio Sec 2008
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Côtes Catalanes IGP 16.5% ABV
16.5% ABV • Fully Oxidized, Oxidative
The most evolved of the Rombeau Rancio secs, the 2008 exhibits a pronounced "rancio funk" while nevertheless retaining its complexity and rough good manners. It was vinified in tank with native yeasts, then transferred to an assortment of old barrels, foudres and glass demijohns for 24 months' aging outdoors. A portion was then returned to the cellars, which rest above ground and lack temperature control, while another portion remained in the "barrel forest" until the time of blending and bottling in mid-2016. Full details
Domaine de Sau Rancio Sec NV
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Côtes Catalanes IGP 18.5% ABV
18.5% ABV
A blend of the 2006 and 2007 vintages, the Domaine de Saü Rancio sec is 100% Grenache gris, harvested by hand from a 1.9-hectare plot of 70-year old bush vines. Fermented with native yeasts in epoxy-line steel tanks and left for a week on its skins, its subsequent elevage takes place in one of the most magical places for oxidative wines in all of Roussillon—a former horse barn on the Château de Saü estate. Here, temperatures range from 55–80F and the Tramontana wind blows outside its wooden doors throughout the year, concentrating the wine left to rest in old 225-liter Bordelais fûts. Full details
Domaine Fontanel Rancio Sec 2007
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Côtes Catalanes IGP 17.0% ABV
17.0% ABV • Fully Oxidized, Oxidative
This is a rare example of what is one of the oldest forms of winemaking, once found throughout the Mediterranean and now preserved by Catalan tradition on both sides of the French-Spanish border. The grapes are hand-harvested and fermented with native yeasts, without fortification. The youngest vines informing this wine date from 1946; the oldest from 1908. Exposed to the elements and aged for many years in partially filled oak barrels, the resulting wine has what the Roussillon locals call le goût de soleil, the taste of the sun: dry and concentrated, with complex rancio flavors of walnuts, cocoa and curry spices. This wine slumbered in barrels until May 2018. Full details
Domaine Jorel ‘La Garrigue’ Rancio Sec 2003
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Côtes Catalanes IGP 16.0% ABV
16.0% ABV • Fully Oxidized, Oxidative
Manuel Jorel’s first Rancio sec was the result of the scorching 2003 vintage and amongst the most unique in the Sotolon Selections portfolio. His small parcel of Macabeu grapes began to shrivel on the vine; he picked the grapes and set about making an ‘orange wine’ with them, leaving the emerging wine on the skins for 28 days. It began to oxidize and he feared the wine lost, but with the advice of an old-timer, he racked the wine into old Rivesaltes casks in the corner of his second cellar (which then doubled as a garage, or garrique). Full details
Mas Peyre ‘Le Démon de Midi’ Rancio Sec NV
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Côtes Catalanes IGP 17.0% ABV
17.0% ABV • Fully Oxidized, Oxidative
The Bourrel family inaugurated this solera of overripe, old-vine Macabeu grapes in 2005. Grapes are harvested by hand at 254 g/l residual sugar and, placed into the first of three barrels, are allowed to slowly ferment to dryness. Subsequent elevage in the partially-filled barrels creates an oxidative environment; bottled at an average of six years of age, the ‘Démon de Midi’ (noonday demon) takes on notes of almond, garrigue honey and leather, with a touch of salt emerging at the finish. Full details
Puig-Parahÿ ‘Pyror’ Rancio Sec NV
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Côtes Catalanes IGP 18.5% ABV
18.5% ABV • Fully Oxidized, Oxidative
The barrels that winemaker Georges Puig blends to produce ‘Pyror’ were first set down in the early 1960s by his father and grandfather, and have been maintained as "perpetual barrels" ever since, with small amounts withdrawn every few years. The wine—equal parts Grenache blanc, Grenache gris and Macabeu—slowly concentrates in the ancient oak and chestnut barrels, gaining a particular combination of polish and rusticity. Full details
Tresmontaine ‘Tabacal Dos’ Rancio
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Côtes Catalanes IGP 17.0% ABV
17.0% ABV • Fully Oxidized, Oxidative
A Catalan tradition, Rancio wines such as this predate the modern conception of wine and viticulture. This wine’s rustic character begins with a full fermentation and evolves first in glass demijohns and then in used oak barrels, which are partially filled and often out in the sun. Owing to the process, the climate, and character of the grapes, the wine is oxidative and rich with earth, smoke and mushroom notes. This wine has aged over 5 years in barrels that formerly housed the eponymous wine of its village, lending a unique depth. Enjoy with cured meats and cheeses, or with rich creamy desserts. Serve either lightly chilled or at cellar temperature. Full details
Tresmontaine ‘Tabacal’ Rancio NV
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Côtes Catalanes IGP 17.0% ABV
17.0% ABV • Fully Oxidized, Oxidative
Tresmontaine ‘Tabacal’ Rancio is the last Rancio produced by legendary Roussillon winemaker Fernand Baixas at Arnaud de Villeneuve, prior to his "retirement." (He can now be found with other raconteurs at nearby Domaine de Rombeau.) The blend is 100% Grenache blanc from the 2002 and 2003 vintages, exposed to the elements in glass demijohns for 18 months, then returned to the cellars to rest in old foudres and barrique for an additional 10 years. Full details
Rivesaltes
Maury
Mas Peyre Maury Hors d’Age ‘La Rage du Soleil’ NV
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Maury AOP 17.0% ABV
17.0% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
First established in 2003, this singular Maury solera was augmented with small lots each year until 2008, then rested quietly in barrel until bottling in late 2016. 100% Grenache noir, the name ‘Rage du Soleil’ alludes to the heat of Roussillon and the enduring nature of its old vines. Oxidative, yet still primary, this deft wine boasts notes of cherry compote, spice cake and cocoa powder; tobacco leaf, bitter orange and rose pepper. With lightly drying tannins balancing the wine’s inherent richness, expect a continued graceful evolution in the bottle. Enjoy with creamy blue-veined cow’s milk cheeses, with nuts and dark chocolates. Serve slightly chilled or at cellar temperature. Full details
Domaine du Dernier Bastion Maury Rancio 2008
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Maury AOP 15.5% ABV
15.5% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
Produced only in exceptional vintages, the Domaine du Dernier Bastion Maury Rancio is pure Grenache noir, selected from the estate’s oldest vines. Fermented in a 200-year-old concrete tank, the wine was aged in a 1,000-liter tonneau for eight years, then placed on the rooftop under glass and exposed to the elements for a final year prior to bottling. The resulting wine exhibits warming complexity and reverberative depth, its mellow rancio character embroidered on flavors of spiced cherry, caramelized orange, fruit cake, fig, walnut, coffee and cocoa. Full details
Domaine du Dernier Bastion Maury Rancio 2007
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Maury AOP 15.5% ABV
15.5% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
Produced only in exceptional vintages, the Domaine du Dernier Bastion Maury Rancio is pure Grenache noir, selected from the estate’s oldest vines. Fermented in a 200-year-old concrete tank, the wine was aged in a 1,000-liter tonneau for nine years, then placed on the rooftop under glass and exposed to the elements for a final year prior to bottling. The resulting wine exhibits warming complexity and reverberative depth, its mellow rancio character embroidered on flavors of spiced cherry, caramelized orange, fruit cake, fig, walnut, coffee and cocoa. Full details