Domaine de l’Aster
A friendly visit with Jacques Bilhac, who is president of the cru of Pézenas, and his son Vincent, As Vincent, observed, un prénom prédestiné, as St Vincent is the patron saint of wine growers. He has studied winemaking and viticulture, and then did some commercial studies, and a stage in Chablis and spent some time in Marc Dubernet’s laboratory, before joining his father in 2017.
They have a total of 24.5 hectares, in 47 different plots – the largest is one hectare - but only vinify the grapes from nine hectares. The rest go to the local cooperative. And although the soil of Pézenas is mainly basalt, they have un peu de tout, namely sandstone, clay and limestone, marl, indeed about ten different soils.
The principal grape varieties of Pézenas are Syrah, Grenache and Mourvèdre, with a minimum of two. Carignan and Cinsault are accessory varieties and things may change with the possible addition of Piquepoul Noir for its acidity, and also Ribeyrenc. And Jacques has also planted half a hectare of Bouquet, named after a researcher at INRA, and based on Grenache Noir. He commented on how the weather has changed. We were meeting after a week of very heavy winter rain and he said that the last time that had happened was 20 years ago, and in 2025 they had rain on 14th July and 15th August, which had not happened in recent previous years. Rainfall in 2025 totalled 700 mm, as opposed to 400 mm in 2024. So he considered 2025 to be a normal year apart from the heatwaves of June and August.
Altogether Jacques and Vincent makes nine wines, a rosé, two whites, five reds and a late harvest wine. So here goes with the tasting.
2024 Anglicae, Rosé, AOP Languedoc – 8.50€
A blend of mainly Cinsualt, with some Grenache and Syrah and a drop of Carignan. Direct pressing. Ripe and rounded with some raspberry fruit. A refreshing finish.
2023 Prélude, Languedoc Blanc - 9.00€
A good third of the blend is Vermentino, that has not been in wood, with Grenache Blanc and Marsanne and a little Viognier, which does spend some time in wood, accounting for about one of the total. Jacques does not want to drown the fruit with oak. There was some oak on the nose and some peachy fruit from the Viognier with a backbone of balanced acidity.
2024 Rêve de Fleur, Languedoc Blanc - 19.00€
A blend of 60% Viognier and 40% Marsanne, vinified in 225 litres barriques and kept in wood until April. Quite a rounded, textured palate. The oak calms the Viognier, and is nicely integrated, providing a satisfying backbone. Good mouthfeel texture and length. A glass pane in the floor of the tasting room let me see that I was standing over the barriques.
2023 Trescol Languedoc Rouge – 8.50€
Meaning trois cols, or three passes in Occitan, or a place where the sun sets. Grenache dominant with some Carignan and Cinsault. Medium colour. Tapenade nose and palate. Quite rounded, supple black olives and a ripe finish at 14°. For Jacques, Cinsault gives some finesse, whereas Pézenas has a heavier, riper profile.
2022 En Montant la Calade, Pézenas – 15.00€
A calade is a stone path, particularly when the stones have eroded. 70% Grenache from basalt and schist and 30% Syrah from basalt. Aged in vat. Medium colour. A freshness with some elegant weight. Ripe fruit and black olives, rounded with a streak of tannin and an underlying elegance.
For Jacques it is absolutely representative of the appellation of Pezenas, with fruit and spice and notes of the garrigues, with a fresh finish and elegant tannins. There is aging potential, or you could drink it now.
Jacques explained that the basalt stops at the banks of the Hérault. Cap d’Adge is the last volcano in a chain of volcanos that starts at Puy de Dôme in the Massif Central. His village of Péret is apparently mentioned in the Musée Vulcania near Clermont Ferrand.
2022 Vitis Basaltica, Pézenas – 13.00€
Mainly Syrah with some Carignan and Grenache. And only grapes from plots of basalt. Aged in vat. Deep colour. Spicy black fruit on the nose and on the palate rounded fruit with a firm background. Quite full-bodied, with a supple tannic finish. Jacques would like to label this cuvée vin volcanique.
2020 Le Hussard Noir, Pézenas – 19.00€
The name is in a memory of Jacques’ grandfather who was a schoolteacher. Teachers in some of the lay schools in France the 19th century had a reputation for severity and were referred as black hussars. As for the wine, it is a blend of 60% Mourvèdre with 20% each of Syrah and Grenache, with half aged in barrel. The Mourvèdre is grown on villefranchien clay, and the Syrah and Grenache on basalt. Deep colour. Quite solid dense black fruit. A ripe palate with supple but firm tannins.
For the moment the appellation of Pézenas will only be red wine. No one was thinking about pink or white wine, when the syndicat was created 30 years ago. There is no obvious choice of grape varieties for white. Several could be considered. Clairette du Languedoc is a adjacent appellation, that covers part of the appellation of Pézenas. Vermentino would be important, and Grenache Blanc, Marsanne, Roussanne, Viognier, but no more than 10%, as well as Terret Blanc and Piquepoul Blanc are all possibilities. Terret perfoms well in a drought. And in the 1990s, more white wine was produced in the village of Peret than red, but most of that wine was destined to the local vermouthiers, such as Noilly Prat in Marseillan
2023 Nos Absents, Pézenas – 38.00€
33% each of Syrah, and Mourvèdre, with 19% Carignan and 15% Grenache. Vinified and aged in new barriques, with a ten-to-fifteen-day maceration in barrel, with a daily pigeage. Deep colour. Riper rounded oak, with good underlying fruit. Quite rich with some tannin. The oak works surprisingly well, and is very well integrated, making for a rich rounded mouthful of wine.
2024 Octobre d’Aster, VSIG - or vin sans indication géographique – 11.00€ in 50 cl. Bottle
Mainly Clairette, with some Vermentino, Petit Manseng, Grenache Blanc, Marsanne and Muscat, picked in October, when the grapes have shrivelled nicely. The first pick is for the dry table wine, usually in late August, and leaving two or three bunches to ripen until October. The picking date in 2025 was 11th October. Light colour. Honeyed nose and palate with some acidity. Quite fresh acidity, with 40 gms/l residual sugar. The acidity comes from the Petit Manseng, which is more at home in Jurançon, than in the Languedoc.
And asked about projects for the future, Jacques and Vincent talked about the export market and they would also like to develop some oenotourism, maybe some chambres d’hôtes. If they were to plant more, it would be white varieties, ultimately with Pézenas Blanc in mind. Carignan Blanc could be good, but it is susceptible to oidium, which requires treatments. And maybe they might consider the resistant varieties. However, their current preoccupations remain mildew and oidium, rather than drought. I left with a feeling that the estate was in good hands.
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