A southern French terroir Star!
Situated in the south of France, nestled in the Languedoc-Roussillon, is the historic, scenic village of Minerve – named for the Roman goddess of wisdom, first planted to vines by the Romans, and the namesake for today’s release. Known the world over for their full-bodied reds, the wines of Minervois (Min-er-vwah) have long been desired, with references of their quality dating back to the writings of Pliny.
Lot 842 Minervois comes to us from one of the top growers in the region boasting a state-of-the-art cellar on land rich with clay-limestone and schist soils producing low yields from vines no less than 30 years-old and hand-selecting clusters before pressing and aging in 100% new French oak. Not only is no expense spared in making this bottle, but generations of concerted cultivation are on display: every local grape type was tested with their soils to find the best terroir per varietal before laying down the vineyard plots. Rest assured, you will not find a more accurate expression of fruit and terroir in tandem than a wine like this.
Did we mention it’s a third of the original winery’s price? Sub-$15 southern French terroir star, time to stock up!
Dark with an almost impenetrable core, red-to-black fruits on the nose, with a healthy serving of herbs, game, and dried leaves haloing. On the entry dark fruits persist; however, black pepper, fresh-turned earth, iron, and soft leather dominate over medium acidity and small, firm, well-integrated tannins showing themselves towards the finish. The finish itself is expectedly Old World and dry with resonant black fruits over a strong minerality that beckons another sip.
Watch as Chris Lafleur, Sommeliers Creed for Cameron Hughes walks us through a tasting.
Wine Tasting Video Highlights
00:00 Intro
00:12 Minervois and South of France
00:30 Sommelier Struggles to Pronounce Pliny the Elder
00:46 Minervois Red Blend
00:57 Color and Legs
01:07 On the Nose
02:07 The Taste
03:19 Where does it fit in your cellar?
03:44 When to drink (July 2023)
https://chwine.com/lot-842-2019-minervois/