Corbières

Version francaise

Cabrières, Corbières and there is also Cabrerolles in the Languedoc, easy to get confused. The Corbières is a hilly, wild area to the west of Narbonne and has long been known for its cheap, big, fruity simple wines. However, I have tasted a number of very good domaine based wines in recent months and visited some too. There seems to be a new wave of producers who are raising quality in the region.

Chief amongst these is Maxime Magnon, a winemaker whose reputation is very high with other winemakers in the region and beyond. Based on just one wine tasted personally I could see why there is a buzz around his name and I hope to taste more soon. Another exciting domaine I got to know through a bottle in the well known O Tonneau restaurant in the seaside village of Peyriac de Mer. Domaine Des 2 Anes is based in that village and I was able to taste ore of their range at Millésime Bio, very exciting too. Natural in style and really well made wines, rich with power and elegance.

Le Grand Guilhem, La Baronne and Sainte Croix (gold medal winners at Millésime Bio) are all domaines whose wines excited me at Millésime Bio (see notes here and here) and are worth seeking out.

Another domaine introduced to me by Dominic George at Le Wine Shop in Pezenas is Aonghusa, I have tried 3 of the wines and they are all full, rich and have a hint of spice and of the wild garrigue in the area’s hills. Owned and run by an Irishman, Pat Neville, Aonghusa has quickly become my house wine. I really like the wines so thank you Dominic!

 

My final recommendation would be Pech Latt which I visited last October, a remote domaine near Ribaute producing lovely wines including some interesting sweet wines from Grenache. Long standing organic producers Pech Latt is areliable source of good wine.

There are also some good white wines from Les Cascades though I found the reds a little oaky for my taste, other than the entry level which is good. This can be a region difficult to master but there appears to be a group of producers who are succeeding in doing so and improving the profile of the Corbières. For me this is the most improved region in the Languedoc. The sleeping giant is awakening.