Blog
I love the Languedoc in southern France. I first went there nearly 20 years ago, which pre-dates my real interest in wine. At that time I was a consumer of anything that was OK to my taste buds and I hardly knew the name of any grapes varieties, perhaps Chardonnay but little else. During this first trip to the region I had my first visit to a vineyard for a tasting which consisted of me drinking each wine that was poured and commenting ‘that’s nice’ to all of them. No connoisseur then as you can see!
If you have never been down to this part of the world then my advice is to get there soon. It is a large region, about the size of Wales with stunning scenery with the Black Mountains and the Pyrenees as a backcloth and the Mediterranean sea in the foreground. Everywhere you look are vines and that is the only problem. The vines have been grown absolutely everywhere and in many cases in entirely the wrong place. Which is why much of the wine produced is low standard from high yielding and over cropped vines.
But this is a place of discovery. There are some superb producers some making AOC wines and other Vin de Pays. Many people like to choose their wine by grape variety and if this is your preference then buy your wine from this region and choose Vin du Pays. The umbrella name for Vin de Pays from this region is Vin de Pays d’Oc and these wines can be produced in any part of the region. You will also come across wines from specific areas within the Languedoc such as Vin du Pays de Hérault and Vin de Pays de Gard and all of them can mention the grape variety on the label. Many of the varieties will be familiar to you such as Chardonnay, Merlot and Syrah but you will also find obscure varieties such as Macabeo, Marsanne and Roussanne. Viognier is also very popular and although it can be tricky to harvest this grape at the right time those who get it right are rewarded with a sublime peachy and creamy wine with refreshing acidity.
A lot has happened to the region since my first visit all those years ago and since then my life has taken a path that has connected me to this beautiful place. I now run weekend trips and week long holidays in this region visiting some of the wonderful vineyards and introducing people to wine tasting and I’m pleased to say that most of them have much better comments to make than my unimaginative ‘that’s nice’.
Happy drinking
Wendy