Description
Côteaux du Languedoc Rouge La Clape ‘La Côte’ Château de La Négly 2020
Château de La Négly, Fleury d’Aude, Coteaux du Languedoc
“…these wines are hard to find in the marketplace, but they’re singular, world class efforts worth the extra effort to track down. Hat’s off to Claude Gros and the team here.” Jeb Dunnuck, The Wine Advocate April 2015
A wine-growing domaine only merits the denomination of a Château if, within the estate, one of the buildings has been given such a distinction during its history. La Négly’s started in the 18th century, when the Château displayed the name of Ancely. In 1781, the estate took the name of Nerly, to finally be called ‘La Négly’ in 1807.
The Château de la Négly is located in the Languedoc, some 20km from Narbonne in the heart of Le Clape Massif. Listed as a world heritage site, this massif was once an Island in the Gallo-Roman era, before the River Aude annexed it from the mainland with its alluvial deposits. The soil is composed of sandy silt, derived from very porous limestone rockslides, thus allowing the rainwater to establish a vital reserve for our vines. The proximity of the sea offers the vineyard a maritime influence, which tempers the harsh climate due to the sun and the Tramontane, a powerful and dry wind from the North.
Jean Paux Rosset and his team, with the help of consultant Claude Gros, have worked tirelessly to make sure that their wines are the very best of the appellation. Ideally situated, the terroirs of La Négly and Boède (a neighbouring property recently purchased by the family) are distinguished by the diversity of their soils. Indeed, Boède has sandy loam and sandstone soil, and La Négly had clay limestone soil, which gives to the wines produced from these vineyards a broad aromatic palate. In total, the vineyard stretches over 50 hectares and Boède over 25 hectares. In order to enable better use of this vineyard, Syrah, Grenache and Mourvèdre replaced Aramon, Terret and Carignan Blanc. The harvesting machinery has given up its place to hands, secateurs and small crates! Sustainable agriculture methods are perfectly adapted here, in order to yield grapes whose flavours reflect the environment they are grown in. Respect for this environment is key here.
The beautiful vineyards, a stone’s throw from the Mediterranean, receive the best viticultural care in order to ensure healthy grapes; this helps the team to pick extremely late if required, especially the Mourvèdre. The range is extremely consistent, with the ‘Brise Marine’ displaying notes of white stone fruit and iodine, while the reds have ripe tannins and great intensity without being heavy.
Intensely aromatic with notes of blackberries, raspberries, chocolate, black olives and earth. Richly textured and complex on the palate, fresh coffee and liquorice linger on the finish.
Grapes: 50% Syrah, 40% Grenache, 10% Mourvèdre
Organic
