Julia Harding MW: It seemed appropriate to choose a wine from this part of the Languedoc where I have spent the last couple of weeks, partly working and partly relaxing. During this time I had tasted (and drunk!) various wines from Minervois and Corbières but had not happened upon anything startling – but then I hadn’t really been concentrating.
However, a visit to the excellent Le Chai d’Homps (aka La Capitainerie) on the Canal du Midi in the little town of Homps got my full attention: a remarkable range of 130 wines from Minervois, arranged by subregion (and with a very helpful wall map and information on almost every wine), plus a few exceptional Vins de Pays d’Oc – wines produced by vignerons who are generally just outside the Minervois AC boundary – all at cellar-door prices. The wines sold in the shop are selected each year by means of a blind tasting by a panel of local producers and other experts.
Extended in 2003, the Chai is run by Laurent de Roulhac who is passionate in a quiet sort of way about the local produce. Not knowing where to start with such a dazzling array, I asked Laurent to narrow down my selection.
The Moulin des Nonnes, Cuvée Ines is a blend of 50% Roussanne, 40% Grenache Blanc and 10% Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains, organically grown. A restrained 20% of each variety is barrel fermented, the rest cool-fermented (12–13 °C) in tank. The blend then spends three months in barrel with weekly lees stirring.
The result is a very pale gold, with the nuttiness of marzipan sweetened by pineapple. The fruit manages to be dense and ripe yet remain delicate and aromatic. The cautious yet deft use of oak has brought a hint of toast and vanilla, an almost imperceptible yet attractively textured edge from the wood tannins and just a little creaminess from the lees stirring. Excellent palate weight and beautifully balanced acidity, mainly thanks to the blocking of malolactic fermentation for the tank fermented part of the wine. Long, rich and refreshing on the finish. Very pure, bowing out with a tingle of spice on the tongue tip.
Le Moulin des Nonnes is part of Ch la Rèze Gravade in the small medieval town of Azille, only a stone’s throw north west of Homps. As its name suggests, it was once used by the Clarisses (Poor Clare) sisters of the former convent to grow grains – the old mill still stands in the middle of the vineyards. Brothers Henri and Louis Andrieu are very much part of the new wave of Languedoc winemaking, pushing for quality and depth of flavour through the use of traditional methods and low yields.
If you buy the wine locally in Homps, you get all this for an amazing €6.80 (the equivalent of less than £5 or $8). It is still well priced when it reaches the UK, selling for £8–9. Stockists include the Flying Corkscrew, Noel Young Wines, Worth Bros and Theatre of Wine. See the directory for contact details.