Wine & Spirits - June 2020 - 63

FOCUS: ONTARIO

FOCUS: MINERVOIS
Our blind panels tasted 25 new-release wines from Minervois for this issue. Our critic for Southern France, Tara Q. Thomas, rated 10 as
exceptional (90+) and 2 as Best Buys. Find a complete list of wines tasted and all reviews at wineandspiritsmagazine.com.

WHITE
277073

91 | Clos du Gravillas

$28

2016 Minervois L'Inattendu ^ This could
stand in for a white Châteauneuf-du-Pape, it's
so rich, firm and structured. The Bojanowskis at Gravillas blend it from grenache (gris
and blanc) with 20 percent macabeu from
90-year-old vines, all of it grown in the rocky,
calcareous soils near the Haut-Languedoc
Natural Park. Fermented and aged in demimuids, it's creamy and nutty, with a chickenbroth richness; the fruit, while fresh, has a
mellowness that recalls baked lemons. Riff
on that note when it comes to food: Lemonstuffed roast chicken or lemony pork chops
would be two ways to go. ¤ Chartrand Imports,
Rockland, ME

RE D

276855

94 | Château Maris

$80

2016 Minervois La Livinière Dynamic ^
Since winemaker Robert Eden bought Château Maris in 1996, he's been progressively
converting it to a showplace for sustainable
winemaking. The vineyards have been certified organic since 2002, and biodynamic
by Demeter since 2008; with the addition of
a winery constructed of hemp in 2012 and
other energy-saving measures, the estate
attained B-Corp certification in 2016. All
of this work comes together in Dynamic,
sourced from a 1.7-acre patch of syrah growing in clay-limestone soils in La Livinière. Fermented in wooden tanks and aged 16 months
in new 600-liter barrels, it's profoundly dark,
an inky well of black-fruit flavor. The walls of
that well are upholstered in smoky, velvettextured tannins, giving the wine a firm, vertical feel without it reading as austere. In fact,
it's juicy and delicious right now, even while
it's built to last for another decade, at least. ¤
Vintners Alliance, New Rochelle, NY
277291

93 | Gérard Bertrand

$300

2017 Minervois La Livinière Clos d'Ora ^
Clos d'Ora is Gérard Bertrand's showpiece,
a 22-acre parcel that climbs over a hill at 720
feet in altitude. The south side is terraces of
sandstone and clay where old-vine carignan
and younger-vine mourvèdre grow; the limestone soils on the north side support syrah
and grenache. He farms it under biodynamic

principles and vinifies each variety separately in unlined cement tanks before blending and aging the wine in oak barrels. That
oak weighs heavily on the just-released 2017
while, underneath, the fruit feels vivacious,
its cherry juiciness lending brightness to the
oak's chocolate richness. There's a deep,
earthy spice that drives through the wine
and holds on at the end, promising more to
come with age. ¤ USA Wine West, Sausalito, CA
276853

93 | Château Maris

$80

2016 Minervois La Livinière Les Amandiers ^ From a 2.5-acre patch of biodynamically farmed old-vine syrah, this is tight and
chewy, the concentrated fruit wrapped in the
caramel notes of the new barrels that held it
for 16 months. Give it hours of air to let those
oaky notes turn floral and spicy, toward hightoned cedar scents that bring out the red
side of the fruit. Time in the cellar, or a long
decant, will let the structure relax and the
fruit flow. ¤ Vintners Alliance, New Rochelle, NY
276889

92 | Clos du Gravillas

$25

2016 Minervois Rendez-Vous Sur La Lune ^
A blend of half syrah with carignan, cinsault
and grenache, all grown in the rocky moonscape of Cazelles, this fermented with ambient yeasts and aged in stainless-steel tanks.
The fruit flavors sing with the clarity of an
eau-de-vie, slightly boozy but pleasingly pure
and spicy; earthy notes ride underneath,
giving the wine extra purchase on the palate without weighing it down. ¤ Chartrand
Imports, Rockland, ME
276854

92 | Château Maris

$20

2017 Minervois La Livinière La Touge
(Best Buy) ^ Mainly syrah, with some grenache and carignan, this is earthy, meaty and
layered. The tannins have a felt-like texture,
lending richness and depth, letting the wine
feel inviting even while the structure is firm
and well packed. It's a lot of wine for $20,
especially considering that you could put a
few bottles down in the cellar. ¤ Vintners Alliance, New Rochelle, NY
276917

92 | Château Pique-Perlou $35

2017 Minervois La Sellerie ^ From a small
winery in Roubia, this is a blend of equal
parts carignan and syrah aged in oak for a
little over a year. It's a big wine, superripe

and extracted, its ambitions emphasized by
its wood tones, yet there's a brightness in
the wine that's reflected in the color, a garnet glint that suggests there's more to come
when the carignan tannins loosen their grip
and the wood takes a back seat to the fruit. ¤
Bradley Alan Imports, NY
276856

91 | Château Maris

$25

90 | Gérard Bertrand

$90

90 | Domaine de l'Ostal

$25

88 | Château Cabezac

$14

2017 Minervois La Livinière Les Planels ^
"Who wouldn't love this?" I wrote in my
notes when tasting this blind. Everyone on
our panel agreed. We were taken by its smoky
bacon fragrance and meaty, plummy fruit, by
its velvety texture and by the dark notes of
rich earth. It may not be the most complex
of Maris's wines, but it's glorious syrah. ¤ Vintners Alliance, New Rochelle, NY
277289
2017 Minervois La Livinière Le Viala ^ A
blend of syrah under carbonic maceration
and traditionally fermented carignan and
grenache, this is lushly fruity. A year of aging
in oak has added smoky scents of bacon and
tobacco, making this an indulgent red for
meaty dinners. ¤ USA Wine West, Sausalito, CA
276956
2016 Minervois La Livinière Grand Vin ^
Jean-Michel Cazes, of Bordeaux's Château
Lynch-Bages, began creating this estate in
2002, when he purchased two neighboring
properties in La Livinière. Now, it spans 370
acres, nearly half of them planted to grapes.
Delphine Glangetas makes the wines, blending the Grand Vin from syrah, with small
amounts of carignan and grenache, and
aging it for a year in used barrels from LynchBages. The 2016 shows all the purple power
of syrah, from its violet scents to its plummy
fruit, held firm with fine plum-skin tannins.
The acidity crackles through it, the wine
electric in its freshness. It's a terrific summertime red for barbecues and outdoor dinners. ¤ Cognac One, NY
277048
2018 Minervois (Best Buy) ^ With its fresh
cherry-berry flavors and spicy basil note, this
feels perfectly pitched for a grilled pizza margherita this summer. ¤ USA Wine Imports, NY/
David Milligan Selections, Ridgefield, CT ■

WINE & SPIRITS

JUNE 2020

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Wine & Spirits - June 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - June 2020

Contents
Wine & Spirits - June 2020 - Cover1
Wine & Spirits - June 2020 - Cover2
Wine & Spirits - June 2020 - 1
Wine & Spirits - June 2020 - Contents
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