Castelmaure Corbieres 2009, France
Whilst the new wave wine of the Languedoc’s Pays d’Oc appellation have grabbed a lot of recent headlines, traditional AOCs like Corbieres continue to make some excellent wines from the limestone hills of the region. This is a blend of Syrah, Grenache and Carignan, the latter being vinified by the technique of carbonic maceration a la Beaujolais Nouveau, but the other parts of the old vine mix are vinified traditionally. It does have a forward, creamy fruit lift on the nose, but hints of the aniseed and floral garrigue of the south. On the palate there is a bit of grip and liquoricy, endive-like edge that adds lots of savoury structure and interest to the creamy, quite plush berry fruit with that soft approachability. An easy drinker, but with a bit of a dark side. More details and food-matching ideas in the video. 6.99, Morrisons.
