Since Monday, Montpellier (Hérault) has celebrated organic wine produced around the world. Among the 1,500 exhibitors gathered these three days at the organic vintage trade fair, some represented with appreciated wines the 383 producers in the Department of Pyrénées-Orientales. Like the Cazes estate, whose vines have been cultivated in biodynamics (a further version of organic farming) for almost 30 years. With visitors, the director of the domain, Benoît Briu, explains the interest of biodynamics: “The particular attention that we pay to work in the vineyard makes the vines less fragile in climatic vagaries, as during these periods of drought rehearsal, ”he explains.
Efforts that are found in the bottle, underlines the director of the Cazes domain: “The whites are particularly appreciated and our sales on this color are constantly increasing thanks to the real originality of the Roussillon wines”. Thus, whether they come from the 60 ha of cultivated vines between Collioure (Pyrénées-Orientales) and Banyuls (Pyrénées-Orientales) on a shale terroir or the 150 ha flourishing on the terroir of rolled pebbles in Rivesaltes (Pyrénées -Orientales), “the white wines of Roussillon offer very interesting acidities and precious regularity”.
Bottles exported to Australia
Acidity and freshness, that’s exactly what Tom Sheer is looking for, an Australian importer at the head of Lo-Fi Wines. “That these winegrowers are able to present fresh wines with good acidity despite in recent years very hot and very dry is a sign for me that they are particularly careful with their vineyard,” he confides. During these three days of the living room, the buyer will have chained the tastings of cuvées, including some of the Roussillon where he is already obtaining himself, with the Matassa estate in the Agly valley and Anglès Leah in Collioure, in particular .
Each year, nearly 1,500 bottles produced by these two winegrowers are shipped to Australia and restaurant tables, sold between 60 and 80 € per unit. “What matters above all is the story that is told around these wines and their winemaker. I consider myself a bit like a treasure hunter looking for the nugget! », Enthuses Tom Sheer.
Nuggets are also what Guillaume Geniez, manager of the Maillol cellars in Perpignan (Pyrénées-Orientales), who came with four of his collaborators: “Our research was in particular on organic wines below 12 euros below 12 euros , but also natural sparkling and biodynamic wines, all regions combined, as well as Spanish Cava. “On the colors, the Perpignan wine merchant also had special attention to whites, for whom” we see a real appetite from our customers “.