Chateau Haut Blanville
Sign in the tasting room at Chateau Haut Blanville
I realise that it is 12 years since my previous visit to Château Haut Blanville with Bernard Nivollet. See a post dated 2014! And things have changed. The next generation of his two daughters have become very much involved in the estate, since 2022. Charlotte trained as an agricultural engineer and spent 16 years in Cambodia. She returned to France in 2019 and studied winemaking at Suze-la-Rousse in the Rhône valley and is now the winemaker at Château Haut Blanville. And her sister Margaux studied commerce and deals with the administrative side of things. They now have 30 hectares of vines. The area has fluctuated over the years, at one stage, reaching as much as 60 hectares, with a significant amount of rented vines. Bernard talked about the differences between the two generations. His daughters favour fruit and easier to drink wines, whereas he likes wines that have undergone a significant ageing period in barrel. The result is two ranges of wine, in two contrasting styles.
Then we talked about their white wine. Nine out of their 30 hectares of vines are white, including a one hectare co-plantation of Chardonnay, Viognier, Roussanne and Marsanne. which are picked together but a different stages of ripening.
Then they have a second complantation with those four varieties to which they have added Sauvignon and Vermentino, but they realised that more was not better and that three worked better than six. They also have some Grenache Blanc in a third vineyard.
Bernard developed Château Haut Blanville from scratch when he retired from Ernest & Young. He realised that it would make more sense to buy vineyards and a cellar, rather than a complete estate. It would him more flexibility. His main plots of vines are at les Peyrals in the village of St Pargoire with some quite prestigious neighbours, namely Clos de la Truffière and Domaine Peyre Rose.
And now for some tasting:
2024 Domaine Haut Blanville, Pays d’Oc, Grande Cuvée - 19.00€
A blend of Chardonnay, Viognier and Sauvignon vinified in old wood. No malo. And aged in barrel until the May following the harvest. Quite a golden colour. Peachy buttery nose. Quite ripe and rounded with good texture and mouthfeel, balanced by some acidity. And Haut because the vines are at 250 metres
They make three levels of white wine. Jardin d’Albisson is the haute de gamme; at 25.00€; la Grand Cuvée middle of the range, and then there are two entry levels a pure Chardonnay and a pure Vermentino at 9.00€
Asked about the harvest, Bernard was expecting, in late July, to start before the middle of August. He commented that there was a lot of millerandage, with uneven ripening within the bunches because of the heat.
2025 L’Imprévue - 12.00€
A pure Cinsault made without any added sulhpur. A three week maceration in vat and bottled six months later. 12.5%.
Rounded red fruit with a streak of quite firm tannin. Medium weight. Good length. Quite a substantial Cinsault. As Bernard pointed out, this is the wine of the next generation.
2025 Lune des Louves - 16.0€
Piquepoul Noir 13%. The name refers to the biodynamic moons, as this is from a biodynamic vineyard. Medium colour. Red cherry fruit. Acidity as well as tannin. Quite fresh and energetic with a juicy finish. Piquepoul Noir is enjoying a small revival in the Languedoc.
2023 Nouvelle Lune, Cépages Oubliés
The forgotten grape varieties are Aramon, Morastel, Ribeyrenc, Terret Noir, from vines that belonged to a friend in my home village of Roujan, which Bernard had rented. The vines have been sold and are under new ownership for the 2026 vintage. I have yet to meet the new owners, but Bernard described him as an ingenieur poète…..and Bernard is considering planting some of these varieties himself. Elevage in vat after a three week maceration and co-fermentation. An interesting comparison with the Piquepoul. There is a two year difference in age and the Cépages Oubliés had filled out, becoming quite supple and rounded, with an elegant fresh finish.
2021 Chateau Haut Blanville. Poètes which is a single plot. Grès de Montpellier
Pure Mourvèdre. apparently when the appellation Grès de Montpellier was created, there was some discussion about allowing a varietal wine, but there was a fear that the INAO simply would not consider it. So they opted for a blend, with the possibility that it is easier to change an existing appellation than create a new one. Grown on limestone.
Four years in wood; bottled earlier this year. Very rounded and oaky, but not aggressive. Firm tannins on the finish. Still very youthful with masses of ageing potential.
2010 Grande Cuvée, Grès de Montpellier - 19.00€
Very first vintage of this was 1998. A classic blend of Syrah, Mourvèdre, Grenache Noir, Carignan. Blended after ageing in barrel. The Carignan is added last, possibly to give some freshness. Very intense and oak. Study chocolatey oak. Rich and intense. The oak is integrated, but the taste to my mind is international rather than languedocien, so it could have come from anywhere that favours rich oak.
2015 Château Haut Blanville, Légendes, Grès de Montpellier - 49.00€
100% Syrah, grown on clay and limestone.. Vines planted in 1955. 14.5 5 years in new wood. Barrels from Radoux in Cognac and François Frères in Burgundy.Intense oak and fruit. Still quite tannic. Small yields 22-28 hls. The average in the Grès de Montpellier is 30 hl/ha. For Bernard the common point of this very varied appellation with many different soils, is minerality, by which he means freshness and salinity.
2011 Clos des Legendes
The first vintage of this cuvée was 2002. 14.5% Deep colour. Rounded oaky and intense. Rich and full bodied, with oaky tannins.
And then Bernard admitted that his favourite wine was Murmures, a Syrah grown on limestone and aged in barrel for four or five years depending on the vintage. He very generously fetched the 2013 vintage. Some intense tapenade, rounded, rich black fruit. Supple tannins. A big mouthful. Intense and long.
When quizzed about future projects, Bernard talked about replanting some of the old varieties, and maybe considering biodynamic viticulture, but that is likely to be Charlotte’s decision rather than his.
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