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Domaine Fontanel
Domaine Fontanel is located in the historic French Catalonian village of Tautavel, famous for its schistes. Production is traditional and sustainable. Yields stay very low, most of the time less than 30hl/ha. After a precise selection of the grapes, the must is converted into wine using traditional maceration. The vineyard dates from 1864, and the domaine was created in 1989 by fifth-generation vine-growers Pierre and Marie-Claude Fontaneil. In 2017, vintners Elodie and Matthieu Collet became the domaine's new owners, with Pierre staying at their side to ensure the transition.
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