The Vins Doux Naturels of Roussillon
Roussillon is rural, remote, and traditional—and like many of France’s peripheral regions, in many ways it’s not really France. Its culture is Catalan, although winemaker and amateur family historian Georges Puig told me that he thinks of his wines more as Mediterranean. In the small, quiet village of Passa where Georges lives, it feels as time has stood still, but, despite its size, the village is part of an historic, integrated Mediterranean network.
I met and tasted with Georges at his kitchen table, where there were files scattered on it documenting his family’s history. Georges has compiled two books, one on his father’s life and another on his very long family history. Besides showing me photos from the 1930s of his father playing rugby for France, shaking the hand of George VI, he also has documents recording his family selling wool in the 1200s and making wine and eau de vie as far back as 1457. The family name and the simple crest of a mountain—Puig means “peak” in Catalan—is found all over the Mediterranean and anyone with the name Puig making wine is probably related to Georges, as he has relatives in Sicily, Mallorca (which used to own Roussillon), Valencia, and Barcelona.
Georges makes some excellent reds, but I was visiting for the Vins Doux Naturels which, on the evidence Georges has found, his family have been making for 550 years. Vins Doux Naturels are not as famous as other fortified wines such as port and sherry, but they have an even longer history and are made in a wide and fascinating variety of styles across the south of France.
The first Vins Doux Naturels were inspired by the sweet wines the ancient Greeks and Romans used to drink when producers realised adding a high-alcohol spirit to the wine made the wines sweet. Muscat de Beaumes de Venise in the southern Rhône and Muscat de Rivesaltes in Roussillon (from Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains and Muscat d’Alexandrie respectively) are made in a fresh, floral, youthful style, while Rivesaltes, made from either Muscat or Grenache, is aged and oxidative. Grenache-based wines from Banyuls and Maury can also be made in a youthful, fruity style while the oxidative wines can age decades.
After tasting three of Georges’s red wines made from old-vine Grenache, Carignan, Mourvèdre, and a little Syrah, we moved on to the Vins Doux Naturels which were full of history. The first was the “Cuvée Georges Puig” from 1977, made by Georges’s father from Grenache and a small amount of Carignan (10%). Almost as old as I am, the early exposure to oxygen and the addition of alcohol means that it can maintain its freshness and structure despite its age. But that wine was a baby compared to the others I tasted. The 1945 was made by Georges’s grandfather when he returned from the Second World War; it was more muted than the rich, spicy 1977, with a sweet, leathery structure and texture. The 1936 was also made by Georges’s grandfather, in the year his father was born. This too was remarkably fresh, with a smoky, cigar, tobacco, whisky-like character. If that wasn’t old enough, we moved on to the 1895 which, Georges told me, he had analysed and found to be technically vinegar; if so, this is about as good as vinegar gets, dense, viscous, and concentrated, the volatile acidity giving it the vinegary character.
We finished with a rancio—a term used to describe a wine that has been deliberately exposed to oxygen and heat—from a year even Georges was unable to identify. This was sherry like in its viscosity, with aromas of brown sugar, burnt toast, and rye crackers and a mature, chewy texture. It was also the wine which Georges described as the most Mediterranean, its style and texture having much in common with the wines the ancient Greeks and Eygptians made. Having a family history dating back to the 1200s wasn’t enough for Georges; his wines connect back to those made thousands of years ago.
Maury and Banyuls
The two highest quality and most famous appellations for Vin Doux Naturel are Maury and Banyuls. Maury is smaller, further inland, and higher up in Roussillon’s warm, dry climate, while Banyuls’s vineyards are located on steep terraces on the Mediterranean coast. Dry whites and reds of good quality are made to pay the bills, but the fortified wines are what make these two appellations so special.
Mas Amiel are probably the most famous producer of Vin Doux Naturel. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, the Bishop of Perpignan lost the estate over a game of cards to Raymond Amiel who expanded the property and established what is still called Mas Amiel. Since 1999, when it was bought by Olivier Decelle, the property has been revived, with production moving from not just sweet, fortified wine to some fabulous dry whites and reds.
The first sight on arriving at Mas Amiel is the rows of bonbonnes, large glass jars, full of wine (mostly Grenache, but with a little Carignan and Macabeu) sitting in the line of direct sunlight. This is the most traditional way of making Vin Doux Naturel and is now rarely practised—a heavily oxidative wine exposed to sunlight and heat just isn’t that fashionable any more. The results are extraordinary, as evidenced in the range of old wines I tried. These included two non-vintage wines, 30 and 40 ans d’age. The 30-year-old was fresh and complex, with aromas of dried fruits, chocolate, roasted coffee, caramel, toffee, mushrooms, and oranges, while the 40-year-old was more rancio, with intense, rich sweet spice aromas. The vintage wines spend a year outside in the bonbonnes; besides the 1985 and 1980, the highlight was the 1969, which was subtle, elegant, and gently expressive, rounded out by aromas of toffee, spices, and chocolate. In general, these oxidative fortified wines become more like madeira as they age, losing some of their richness and gaining a graceful structure.
This oxidative style is not the only fortified wine made at Mas Amiel. A fresher, fruitier style is fermented and matured in concrete and oak, not receiving the same exposure to oxygen or heat. The delicious 2018 Vintage Blanc is made from Grenache Gris, with fresh, juicy aromas of green apple, citrus, dried fruits, grapes, and white flowers and is almost like drinking grape juice (think of Floc de Gascogne). The 2014 Vintage Reserve is from Grenache and is aged in oak for twelve months, for intense, ripe aromas of strawberry preserves and chocolate. Fresh and smooth, it’s like port but lighter. The 2012 Vintage Charles Dupuy is aged for slightly longer—18 months—and is richer, riper, and with more complexity and depth.
Domaine Madeloc are a producer based in the town of Banyuls, owned by Pierre Gaillard whose family have several properties across France. Banyuls is wonderfully beautiful and even in early February plenty of tourists were enjoying the sunshine, especially in the nearby coastal village of Collioure which gives its name to the dry wines made in the region. Madeloc were established in the 1990s, and, as with Mas Amiel, one can only praise Gaillard for promoting the great fortified wines of Roussillon despite no historical connection to the region. There are three fortified wines in their range. Asphodéles is the white, made from Grenache Gris, and the 2018 was fresh, fruity, and waxy, not dissimilar to a white port. Grera (meaning cherry) is made from Grenache and spends one year in oak; the 2016 was fruity, dusty, creamy, and smoky, with a light, grainy tannic grip. The Robert Pagés, named after the former owner of the winery, is made in the more traditional, oxidative style, aged for a year outside for rich, intense aromas of figs, prunes, toffee, dark chocolate, and sweet spices.
The steep terraces of Banyuls.
Dom Brial
For much of the twentieth century, Roussillon and neighbouring Languedoc were dominated by co-ops. In general, they haven’t helped the regions with an emphasis on growers getting paid for the quantity of their grapes rather than the quality. However, it’s important to remember that co-ops are not always low quality and that they can serve a positive role.
Dom Brial is the oldest co-op in Roussillon, established in 1923 after phylloxera, strikes, and riots had left Roussillon in a parlous state. In the 1990s, there was a shift towards ensuring members were rewarded for producing quality grapes and they are also promoting organic viticulture to their growers. With 2,000ha of land (10% of all of Roussillon), Dom Brial work with 80 full-time growers whose vineyards are ranked for quality during the growing season, and then the quality of the grapes is also ranked when they reach the winery. I got the sense of a co-operative doing what it should—promoting co-operation among its members to raise quality rather than simply rewarding them for the amount of grapes they produce.
Dom Brial make plenty of white, rosé, and red, as well as Vin Doux Naturel from the Rivesaltes and Muscat de Rivesaltes appellations. Since 1991, they have also owned Château les Pins, an historic property located in the centre of the village of Baixas (pronounced the same as Rías Baixas in Spain; the French authorities have so far refused to allow the French village its own appellation due to potential confusion with its Spanish counterpart). The Château les Pins Muscat de Rivesaltes 2017 is a great example of the style, extremely fresh and floral, with aromas of roses, ginger, lychee, white pepper, and grapes, with a nice grip to it. These wines are designed to be drunk young, though I did get to try the 1994 which still had its structure but was a bit too developed.
The oxidative styles age much more successfully. The 2014 Rivesaltes Ambré from Château les Pins is made from Macabeu, Grenache Blanc, and Grenache Gris; as the name suggests, it’s amber in appearance, with oxidative aromas of hazelnuts and rye crackers. Dom Brial also make oxidative fortified wines under their own label and are one of the biggest producers of both Muscat de Rivesaltes and Rivesaltes. The 1999 “Grande Réserve” Rivesaltes was viscous and chewy, with intense aromas of dried fruits, caramel, toffee, and brown sugar. The 1979 was still incredibly lively, with an extra toasty quality, while the 1959 was smoky and concentrated, with a long finish. As with Mas Amiel’s older vintages, it could be confused with the highest-quality old madeiras.
We finished with the 2000 Rancio Sec, a dry fortified wine reminiscent of amontillado in its style and further proof of the extraordinary range of wines made in Roussillon: nutty, chewy, yet very fresh with a viscous texture, and completely different from the other Vins Doux Naturels I tried on the trip.
While an area such as Roussillon may seem undeveloped and not particularly contemporary, it means that these historic styles of wine still exist and one can taste decades—if not centuries—of winemaking experience, tradition, and culture. The dry red wines, in particular, are well worth seeking out and are rapidly increasing in quality, but the Vins Doux Naturels are extraordinary in their range, quality, and capacity to age. They are a difficult sell (bizarrely, the French drink more ruby port than their domestic fortified wines), but they are a must for any wine lover to enjoy and appreciate. After all, how often does one get to drink wine from the nineteenth century?
