Southwest France Flashcards
The Dordogne
Bergerac
Monbazillac
Bergerac
Dry and sweet white, rose, red
50% red, 10% rose, 40% white
Slightly warmer and drier than Bordeaux
Clay and limestone with some gravel
Wines must be blends of the principle varieties
Reds: 50% must be two of Cab Sauv, Cab Franc, Malbec, Merlot.
55hl/ha max
Large stainless or old oak
Cotes de Bergerac restricted to only the main Bordeaux varieties and 50 hl/ha with some oak; mostly Merlot
Good to very good and inexpensive to mid
Monbazillac
Sweet wines only
Botrytis or just late harvest
Lies between the river Dordogne and a tributary
This plus funneling of moist air along the rivers creates high humidity which is burnt off by the sun for noble rot
Hand picked in a number of passes
Must be 80% of principal varieties of Sauv Blanc, Sauv gris, Semillon, Muscadelle
Max 30 hl/ha
Fermentation in oak is less common than in Sauternes
good to very good and inexpensive to mid
Cahors Environment and Viticulture
Warmer and drier than Bordeaux with some Atlantic influence.
Less spraying, able to ripen Malbec & Tannat, more organic than avg.
Soils range from rich alluvial next to river Lot (higher yields)
Mid slope with poorer soils and lower yields
Top of plateau at 300m with low nutriend limestone soils for low yields and high concentration
pruning ranges from bush to cordon to Guyot
Flat is machine, slopes are hand
Quality is increasing
Malbec
Also known as Cot
Vigorous and needs careful canopy and yield management
Susceptible to coulure
Cahors wines with lots of Malbec are deep ruby, med to pronounced violet, red and black plum, med to med plus acid and med plus to high tannin,
Very good and outstanding may be aged in oak and vanilla and sweet spice
Good to outstanding mid to prem
Cahors Winemaking
Min 70% Malbec remainder Merlot or Tannat
Top quality are more like 90% - 100% Malbec
Destemming is required to prevent underripe stems adding aggressive tannins
Historically cool seasons led to a lack of maturity now it’s more likely lack of water
Styles vary from:
Early drinking: using Merlot, 7 - 10 days on the skins for limited tannin
Bottle Aging: 15 - 25 days on skins for more flavor and tannin
Cahors Business
80% private / 20% one coop (vinovalie)
Looking to exploit the success of Argentina marketing as french Malbec or Original Malbec
Voluntary code of quality and price
Tradition: inexpensive, 70 - 85% Malbec, rich alluvial soils, higher yields, lower concentration
Prestige: mid price, grown on mid slope
Speciale: mainly 100% Malbec, premium, highest plateau
70% in FR, exports up 4x in 10 years to 2017 (UK, US, CA)
Ch. du Cedre, Clos Triguedina
Madiran Climate and Viticulture
80km from Atlantic in site of the Pyrenees
Some Atlantic influence, high rainfall of 1,000mm falling late winter and spring
Warm, sunny summers and dry autumns.
Warm days, cool nights, and hot dry Fohn wind. These enable Tannat to ripen in most years
Comprised of four large ridges oriented north/south with steep west facing slopes.
Slope soils are mainly clay and limestone with good drainage for tannic wines suitable for aging
Flatter soils are clay and loam soils less tannic drunk earlier
Cordon de Royat or Replacement Cane
Tannat
Very vigorous so needs trellising for support
Mid ripening so usually avoids autumn rain
Prone to botrytis bunch rot
Highly tannic
Deep ruby, pronounced blackberry and blackcurrant, plus oak; high tannin and acidity, full body and alcohol top end of med to high
Very good to outstanding and mid to prem
earlier drinking less tannic also made
Madiran winemaking
Must be 60% - 80% Tannat with Cab Franc, Cab Sauv, and local variety Fer (aka Fer Savadou)
Must be destemmed to prevent further tannin
Max 55hl/ha
Try to soften tannin through oak aging, bottle age and in 1991 Patrick Ducournau pioneered technique of micro-oxygenation to soften tannins
A recent trend is towards more accessible styles; ripe grapes, gentle pressing, micro-ox
Can be sold as of Nov year after harvest
Madiran Business
80% sold in FR
Alain Brumont and Ch. d’Aydie
50/50 private and coops (Cave de Crouseilles and Plaimont
Jurancon Wine Styles
Dry wines and sweet white wines from Petit and Gros Manseng and others.
70% sweet and med sweet and 30% dry
Jurancon Vendages Tardives intense lemon and mango, high acidity and alcoho near top end of med and high, full body. Sweet, very good to outstanding
Jurancon is med sweet and good to very good and inexp to mid
Jurancon Climate and Viticulture
Mild, humid climate
High rainfall of 1,200 mm throughout the year impacting flowering and fruit set and harvest
Planted on slopes for good drainage
Some slopes are steep enough to require terraces
Best are south and south west facing for max sunlight and ripening
Influenced by Pyrenees which give rise to a Fohn wind. Hot and dry blowing in spring and autumn 30% of the time
Dries the air, ventilating the canopy
This heat and wind produce over mature berries for sweet wines
Spring frosts are a risk due to altitude
Budding zone trained well above ground to mitigate risk.
Limestone, clay, sand, stones
Hand picking in a series of passes from Oct to Nov / Dec
Petit Manseng
Gros Mansent
Petit Manseng:
Early budding (spring frosts) and mid to late ripening
Thick skins and resistant to botrytis bunch rot so suitable for late harvesting
Highly aromatic and retains acidity so suitable for sweet wine production
Gros Manseng:
Similar to Petit but higher yields so more for dry wines
Jurancon Winemaking
All wines must have 50% Petit or Gros Manseng though most are 100% these
Three categories with progressively higher sugar levels:
Jurancon Sec: Max yield 60hl
Jurancon: Med sweet, min 40g/l RS, max 40hl
Jurancon Vendages Tardives: sweet, min 50g/l RS, but typ much higher, no enrichment, max 40hl/ha, 100% Petit or Gros Manseng, can’t be picked befoe Nov. 2
Higher quality fermented in barriques and aged for 12 - 18 mo with top using new oak
For sweet, malo is avoided to retain acidity and preserve primary
