Domaine d'Aussières
Aussières was built on a fertile ecosystem where nature and people come together to learn from each other and create. Our village is very much a living place, where dialogue is the cardinal value. A dialogue of many kinds: between the elements, between the generations that have labored its grounds, between its villagers and craftsmen, and between the wine world’s different schools of thought.That is what moves us forward, ultimately creating wines that tell a story of place, respect and nuance.
The vintage
The weather usually varies enormously across the Languedoc region, but was uncharacteristically uniform in 2017. There was plenty of rain between the end of January and the end of March, enabling the replenishment of the water reserves essential for a good start to the growth cycle. This unusually wet start to the season was followed by some major climate incidents: like everywhere else in France, and indeed in Europe, the Languedoc experienced two frosts at the end of April of a severity that had not been seen in the region for more than 25 years, and which destroyed hundreds of hectares of vines. Nearly a third of Aussières’ vineyard was affected by these late sub-zero temperatures, and in one area the entire harvest was lost. Nevertheless, in the areas not affected by this disaster, the vintage proved to be of very high quality, with temperature and rainfall patterns similar to the excellent 2015. This enabled a good expression of the vines throughout the growth cycle, from bud break to flowering and, finally, the ripening stage. Superb weather in September and October enabled excellent levels of ripeness to be reached by all the grape varieties, with beautiful aromatic expression and good balance across all of the plots.
Varietals
Syrah : 57%
Mourvèdre : 33%
Grenache : 10%
Mourvèdre : 33%
Grenache : 10%
Tasting
Beautiful dark colour with glints of black. The nose is still closed, confirming the wine’s youth. Relatively understated attack, quickly developing volume on the palate, with notes of black fruit and spices. The tremendous richness of the Mourvèdre combined with the balance of the Syrah and the finesse of the Grenache gives this wine a very elegant tannic structure. Well-integrated notes from the barrel ageing mingle harmoniously in the long, lingering finish.