Minervois (AOC)
| Minervois | |
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| Year of establishment: | 1985 |
| Country: | France |
| Cultivation climate: | Mediterranean |
| Soil types: | very complex: slate, white marble, quartz gravel, sandstone; central: sandstone, limestone and marl soils |
| Planted acreage: | 3300 ha. |
| Grape varieties: | Syrah, Mourvèdre, Grenache, Lladoner Pelut, Carignan, Cinsault, Terret, Aspiran, Piqupuol, marsanne, Roussanne, Maccabeu, Bouboulenc, Clairette, Vermentino, small berry Muscat |
| Wine quantity: | 130,000 hl / 17 million bottles |
The Minervois is a wine-growing region in Languedoc-Roussillon in France . Viticulture has been practiced here since Roman or Gallo-Roman times, when the area belonged to the province of Gallia Narbonensis ; the Minervois is therefore one of the oldest wine-growing regions in France. It takes its name from the central site Minerve and is located in the departments of Herault and Aude . In the northeast it borders on the appellation Saint-Chinian , in the south on the Corbières , in the west lies the Cabardès . Since February 15, 1985, the predominantly red wines of the Minervois have had the status of an Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée . In 2002, a good 214,000 hectoliters were produced on 5,081 hectares, 95% of which was red wine .
Landscape and landmarks
The landscape of the Minervois is extremely charming at altitudes of around 50 to 500 meters above sea level. d. M. between the Canal du Midi in the south and the Montagne Noire , a branch of the Massif Central , in the north. In addition to the impressive landscape, numerous prehistoric caves and dolmens, countless Romanesque churches, the abbey of Caunes near Rieux-Minervois , charming villages along the Canal du Midi and the town of Minerve in the Cathar country can be visited . Other places of interest are Cesseras , Siran and Cassagnoles .
Grape varieties and wines
The red wine grape varieties grown in the Minervois are Syrah , Mourvèdre (together at least 20%), Grenache , Lledoner Pelut , Carignan , Cinsault , Piquepoul Noir , Terret Noir and Aspiran . Since 1999, the first four grape varieties have to account for at least 60%. This is intended to limit the proportion of the still dominant carignan. However, these limits relate to the entire tillage of the producer, so that individual cuvées can also exceed these limits.
The white wines are made from Grenache Blanc , Bourboulenc ( called Malvoisie ), Macabeo , Marsanne blanche , Roussanne and Vermentino ( called Rolle ) grapes . In addition, the varieties Terret Blanc and Terret Gris as well as Muscat blanc à petits grains (maximum 10%) are still used in small quantities .
The red wine of the Minervois stands out among the wines of the Languedoc-Roussillon for its delicacy and elegance. Nevertheless, it is of a Mediterranean character. Its natural alcohol content must be at least 12% by volume. It has a deep color, strong aromas and full body. It can be stored for at least five years, and good vintages also age longer in the cellar.
Authorized municipalities in the Minervois wine region
- In the Aude department (45 municipalities)
Aigues-Vives , Argeliers , Argens-Minervois , Azille , Badens , Bagnoles , Bize-Minervois , Blomac , Bouilhonnac , Cabrespine , Castelnau-d'Aude , Caunes-Minervois , Ginestas , Homps , La Redorte , Laure-Minervois , Limousis , Mailhac , Malves , Marseillette , Mirepeisset , Paraza , Pépieux , Peyriac-Minervois , Pouzols-Minervois , Puichéric , Rieux-Minervois , Roquecourbe , Roubia , Rustiques , Saint-Couat , Saint-Frichoux , Saint-Nazaire , Sainte-Valière , Sallèles-Cabardès , Salsigne , Tourouzelle , Trassanel , Trausse-Minervois , Trèbes , Ventenac-Minervois , Villalier , Villarzel, Villegly , Villeneuve-Minervois .
- In the Hérault department (16 communes)
Agel , Aigne , Aigues-Vives , Azillanet , Beaufort , Cassagnoles , Cesseras , Félines-Minervois , La Caunette , La Livinière , Minerve , Montouliers , Olonzac , Oupia , Saint-Jean-de-Minervois , Siran .
Minervois-La-Livinière
In the heart of the area, five communes with the center La Livinière have been forming their own appellation for red wine with the name Minervois-La-Livinière since 1999 . The climate here reaches extreme levels with particularly low rainfall of 400–500 mm per year. The locations are mainly south-facing, which means they are particularly well protected against cold north and north-westerly winds. At night, cool air currents from the mountains have a tempering effect. Syrah and Mourvèdre dominate the vineyard with a combined at least 40%, together with Grenache the three must provide at least 60%. The Minervois La Livinière is characterized by its particular elegance with a comparable structure and body compared to the simple Minervois. In 2002, 8,287 hectoliters were produced on an area of 227 hectares.
Muscat de Saint-Jean-de-Minervois
In the municipality of Saint-Jean-de-Minervois , the Muscat de Saint-Jean-de-Minervois is a sweet Muscat wine . The regulation requires that the must contains at least 252 g of sugar per liter (→ must weight ), which already corresponds to the selection level. Its fermentation is stopped by adding 5–10% alcohol. At least 125 g of unfermented sugar per liter must then remain. The Muscat de Saint-Jean-de-Minervois has already since 1949 its own Appellation Contrôlée, for only the muscatel -Rebsorte Muscat blanc à petits grains is approved. The basic yield is very low at 28 hl / ha. Since it grows at an altitude between 250 and 280 m above sea level, the grapes ripen relatively slowly and late. This gives it a particularly intense aroma of flowers and tropical fruits. In 2002, 4912 hl were produced.
Web links
literature
- Jancis Robinson : The Oxford Wine Lexicon. 2nd, completely revised edition. Hallwag, Munich 2003, ISBN 3-7742-0914-6 .
- Pierre Galet : Cépages et Vignobles de France . Lavoisier Publishing House, Paris 2004, ISBN 2-7430-0585-8 .
- Benoît France: Grand Atlas des Vignobles de France . Éditions SOLAR publishing house, Paris 2002, ISBN 2-263-03242-8 .
