Domaine Philémon "Croix de la Bouscarie" Gaillac Rouge 2020

Alcohol: 12%

Grape(s): 100% Duras

Localization: Gaillac, Southern France

Tasting Notes: Organic, hand-harvested Duras from Gaillac. A swirl of savory, spicy, & earthy around a core of purple & blue fruit, cassis, & plums. Balanced, enticing, delicious. 

The Domain: Domaine Philémon is located in Villeneuve-sur-Vere, a small village on the Vere river in between Albi and Cordes in the northeast quadrant of the Gaillac appellation. The Vieules family have had a vineyard in Villeneuve since 1804. Today the vineyard is run by Mathieu Vieules who grows wheat, sunflowers and grapes in equal proportions. All his land is farmed organically with the vineyard being certified in 2013. The domain takes its name from Mathieu’s great-grandfather, Philemon, who in 1914 was the first generation to produce wine commercially. In 2003 Mathieu became the first to estate bottle his family’s wines. Along with his other crops, Mathieu has twenty hectares of vineyards in production along the Cordes plateau on south facing slopes with a calcerous soil. They are planted almost entirely to the traditional Gaillac grape varieties: Loin de L’oeil, Mauzac and Muscadelle for the whites, and Braucol (Fer Servadou), Duras, Prunelart and Jurançon Noir for the reds. The vines are largely trained in the gobelet fashion meaning that they are head pruned and yields are kept exceedingly low; 40 hl/h for the whites and 30hl/h for the reds. A good proportion of the vines are more than fifty years old and the harvest is done entirely by hand. In addition to being certified organic the domain is a member of Nature et Progrès, an organization that certifies natural wine. The bottles are sealed with a crown cap.