Merlot

Val de l'Ours
There’s a place on the hills bordering the Mediterranean shores where nature has always been so abundant that brown bears had chosen it to settle down, knowing that the rocky hillsides and forest would provide them a safe habitat, and the thick vegetation ample supplies of food and water.
Today human activity has reclaimed this fertile valley, pushing the bears further up towards the Pyrenean mountains and allowing us to produce a range of generous wines.

The vintage
In the Languedoc, the cold, wet winter, very wet spring, and substantial rain in June, brought the benefit of well-replenished groundwater reserves, and the inconvenience of rampant mildew that affected certain areas in the region.
Thanks to a very hot summer punctuated by regular, short spells of rain, accompanied by dry air and favourable temperatures with a marked difference between day and night-time temperatures, the characteristic of the vintage that will be most remembered is the exceptional quality of the harvest.
This propitious weather enabled the grapes to be picked at optimal ripeness. During the harvests, the Syrah stood out as having flourished in this vintage’s slightly unusual weather conditions. 2018 presented all the characteristics of a fine vintage at Aussières and in the Languedoc generally.
Once again this year, this Val de L'Ours Merlot is blend of the Domaine's wines and wines selected from the best terroirs for Merlot in the Languedoc.
Varietal
Merlot : 100%

Tasting
Beautiful deep, dark red with glints of crimson.
The nose opens with notes of pomegranate and blackberries, characteristic of this grape variety in the Languedoc.
On the palate, after a clean, direct attack with the same black fruit, the wine develops good volume and evolves towards liquorice and slightly peppery notes; the finish is long with pleasant sensation of freshness.
The very appealing, crisp style of this Merlot offers an excellent expression of the 2018 vintage.