Domaine de la Terre et du Temps
If you are
walking through the old town in Pézenas, do stop at no 10, rue de la
Foire. There’s a large door that leads
into a small courtyard, which features regularly on the itinerary of the tourist
office. And there you will find a small
shop and tasting caveau, called La Terre et du Temps. This is the new venture of Jean-Claude
Zabalia who made a reputation for himself, running the large estate of Château
St. Martin de la Garrigue outside Montagnac, for a number of years. He made one of my favourite Picpoul, not to
mention some delicious Bronzinelle. But
he had never really thought about taking on his own vineyard, or if he had, he
had dismissed the idea… but circumstances changed last year when St. Martin was
bought by Russian investors. And
Jean-Claude found some vineyards that he really liked, namely the Château des Deux Rocs, in the hills above the
village of Cabrières. As a result he, and his wife Marie, have gone into partnership
with another couple, Eduard and Florence Hennebert, who own la Cure Gourmande, the highly tempting sweet and biscuit shop next door.
Jean-Claude
is particularly excited about the schist of Cabrières. He has never worked with schist before, but
the schist of Cabrières is different from that of Faugères. Faugères is pure schist, whereas Cabrières
also has some limestone outcrops. The
Pic de Vissou, which dominates the
skyline of Cabrières, and which was formed when the Pyrenees were created, is
limestone. Schist soil is acid, but
illogically that does not make for acid wine, but for supple flavours. However, the limestone adds freshness. And also the vineyards are relatively high
in altitude at 280 – 400 metres, which makes for more freshness. Altogether there are 17 hectares in
production, with a further four hectares that have been replanted; Carignan has
been pulled up in favour of some white varieties, Grenache Blanc, Roussanne and
Vermentino, as well as some Syrah.
And in
addition they have bought the two and a half hectares of terraced vines in
Aniane on the Massif des Brousses. These
vines constituted Gérard Depardieu’s
Midi project, L’Esprit de Fontaine. I have tasted this wine a couple of
times at the Aniane salon and have found it distinctly disappointing, and also
expensive. However, the problem was not so
much with the vineyards, but with the winemaking. Nobody was really looking after anything
properly. Consequently Jean-Claude has
taken over the vineyards as well as the contents of the cellar. The first vintage that will be properly his will
be the 2013.
And the
third strand in his new venture is Picpoul de Pinet. That is the wine that he enjoyed making at
St. Martin de la Garrigue. Apparently it
is impossible to find Picpoul vineyards for sale, but he has been able to rent
a couple of hectares, so the key decisions in the vineyard will be his. The picking date is a very important decision;
Picpoul ripens late and there is a tendency to pick it too early. And he also favours an élevage on the lees
which makes for more weight and flavour.
So the
first bottle Jean-Claude opened was
2012 Mas Autanel, Picpoul de Pinet. 8.90€
The name is
an invention; Autan is the name of the wind that comes from the sea and Autanel
makes it a diminutive. The wine had some
colour and was quite ripe on the nose, with a similarly rounded palate, with
some ripe fruit. The grapes were picked
on 5th October in 2012, as opposed to late September. There was some satisfying texture, with a
hint of a salty tang.
2012 Château des Rocs, Cabrières, Prémices – 7.90€
Cinsaut has
always been an important component of the vineyards of Cabrières, with at least
50% in the rosé. This wine has 60% Cinsaut
along with some Grenache, and a little Syrah.
The grapes are pressed, but given a bit of skin contact in the time that
it takes to fill the press, as they are handpicked. There was a little colour, a gentle shade of
orange pink, with some strawberry and raspberry fruit on the nose. Some weight
and texture on the palate, with some exuberant fruit balanced with acidity, and
a fresh finish. It was delicious.
2012 Château des Deux Rocs, Blanc – 7.90€
This is a
blend of equal parts of Muscat and Viognier.
It was quite peachy and aromatic.
Jean-Claude had not worked with either grape variety before and he finds
them a little too exuberant and aromatic – his heart is really with Picpoul –
so he put the wine into an old barrel for a few months and worked on the lees,
which had the effect of reining in the aroma.
Nonetheless it was still quite rich and honeyed and I did prefer the
Picpoul. It will be interesting to see
what he makes of his Grenache Blanc.
2012 Domaine des Deux Rocs Rouge - 7.90€
60% Syrah
and 40% Grenache, élevage in vat and bottled in the middle of May. The assemblage is done as soon as the
malo-lactic fermentation is finished.
Medium colour. Some dry peppery fruit. Quite a ripe palate with some supple tannins
and a fresh finish. Some very appealing
spice, with lots of nuances and some satisfying balance. A lovely glass of wine.
A second
cuvée is also in the pipeline, currently ageing in a barrel and will not be
bottled until the autumn.
2010 la
Bergerie d’Aniane – 14.90€
The only impact
that Jean-Claude had on this wine was in the final blend, of Syrah, Grenache and
Carignan. The wine was in 20hls
foudres. There was some spice with some
fruit and some supple tannins. I also
found it tasted a little alcoholic on the finish, although it was only 13.5˚, and there was a slight edge on the finish. This is definitely work in progress, as Jean-Claude was very much dependent on the less than satisfactory work of others. So we
shall have to look forward to 2013 with Jean-Claude’s first wine, where he has
run the vineyards and made the
wine.
And why Domaine de la Terre et du Temps ? They represent three things that are very important to the vigneron. Temps means both time and weather in French,
and the vigneron is subject to both. Nor must we forget the importance of the
soil. Jean-Claude complained that so many
people ask about grape varieties and forget about soil, and yet that is the
basis of everything.
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