Wishing all my readers a happy new year, health and good wines. January is always a bleak month here in the North East of England and we have had stormy weather though not wintry, so far. Therefore, like many others, it is a good time to plan for warmer weather; trips to the Languedoc and to Australia and New Zealand beckon in 2024. They should bring plenty of wine experiences.

In recent years I have seen in the new year with a bottle of Jeff Coutelou’s wine, and this year it was La Vigne Haute 2017, none better. It is in a good place though still has plenty of life ahead, no need to open any bottles if you have one still. I also enjoyed one of Jeff’s magnums of Le Vin Des Amis 2018, appropriately with friends, full of juicy red fruits but, again, in early maturity rather than at its peak.

Other good bottles opened this month (no dry January in the March household!) include: a 2018 Belle Lurette from Domaine de Cébène in Faugères, yet another fine example of Brigitte Chevalier’s talents; a 2021 version of Becker Grauburgunder which was bone dry, citrusy but with yellow fruit and texture; Casa Pardet Roiget 2017 made from Cabernet Sauvignon and Trepat. Perhaps best of all was Maxime Magnon’s Métisse 2020. Métisse wines, blending red and white grapes, have become increasingly popular in recent years and I am a fan of the typically light red fruit and acidity which comes with the style. Maxime’s bottle combines Carignan, Cinsault and the Grenaches Noir and Blanc from his Corbières vineyards. The result was a deep rosé colour, overt fresh fruit and a clean, lingering finish.

In France it is tasting season with Montpellier events last weekend and the annual Loire events such as La Dive next weekend. I will be attending events in London in February, sadly missing out on the French events.

January is pruning month. This is a vital part of the year for the vines, cutting away the deadwood from last year whilst preparing the plant for this vintage and the next. I have been watching videos and reading about pruning as practices are changing. I recommend this article on Jancis Robinson’s website which is free to read. Youtube has a lot of videos, look out for Simonit & Sirch or Marceau Bourdarias. My friend Ines, who worked harvest last year with us, is doing a lot of research on the subject and it was fascinating listening to her talk about the subject last year. The new methods are looking to allow the free flow of sap through the vine and keep cuts and scars away from that flow. It is complicated but needs to be repeated for every vine, tens of thousands in Jeff’s case. He posted a video on his Facebook and Instagram pages of this year’s pruning.

Meanwhile January brings the newsletter from Jeff with its carte des voeux, his humorous poster reflecting wine and current events as well as a report on last year’s vintage and thoughts for the future. It’s fair to say that Jeff is anxious about climate change in this newsletter. “Let’s not bury our heads in the sand, if the climate continues to unravel like this then it will be increasingly difficult to continue winemaking.”

Why the despair? Jeff repeats what he told me last autumn. In the last decade there have been four years of drought, one of frost and one of mildew with severe heatwaves almost every year on top. As it is a ‘carte des voeux’ he wishes for a calmer decade ahead. However, he is pessimistic about that and describes how the new parcel of Peilhan, which has lain fallow for a few years now to attain organic certification, will be planted with Parellada, Malvasia de Sitges (both Catalan grapes) and Muscat d’Alexandrie which grows so well in this vineyard. This will complement the parcel of Xarel-lo in the vineyard which will reach early maturity in 2024 and make a small quantity of wine.

Jeff’s notes on 2023 rue the severe drought stretching from the previous autumn, through Spring (just 40mm of rain) and into a very hot period in summer which brought harvest forward. Harvest, as I reported on here, was straightforward since the dry conditions meant next to no disease. However, Jeff reports that the fermentations were difficult with some stopping altogether and one or two smaller tanks having to be abandoned. Nonetheless, this Spring will see releases of familiar named cuvées such Le Vin Des Amis, Ploutelou, Clairette, 7, Rue De La Pompe and TSCA. Couleurs Réunies will be revamped with older varieties and there’s a new cuvée, Macaboeuf (Macabeu raised in concrete egg, hence the pun). Other cuvées will follow on as they complete fermentation and reach maturity.

All we can do is join Jeff in wishing for a kinder climate and do all we can to help fight the chaos which we are seeing year in and year out. Let’s hope that 2024 be the start of a turnaround.