Patrimonio is an appellation for white, red and rosé wines from the southern tip of the Cap Corse peninsula in Corsica, an island in the Mediterranean Sea between France and Italy. The communes involved are Barbaggio, Farinole, Oletta, Poggio-d'Oletta, Saint-Florent, Santo-Pietro-di-Tenda and Patrimonio itself. The soils of the valleys and hillsides of this region are distinct from the rest of the island in that they are largely composed of calcareous clay and limestone. The majority of Patrimonio's vineyards are located on the coast of the Gulf of St.
Florent, whose Clear blue waters attract crowds of tourists in the summer. Because of this ready-made consumer base, only a small percentage of Patrimonio wine leaves Corsica. The wines are made from traditional Grape varieties, with 100% Vermentino for the whites and 90% Sangiovese (called Nielluccio here) for the reds and rosés, with a hint of Grenache or Sciaccarello. .
Grenache noir is a grape variety that originated in Spain. It produces a variety of grape specially used for the elaboration of wine. It is rare to find this grape to eat on our tables. This variety of grape is characterized by medium to large bunches, and grapes of medium size. Grenache noir can be found in many vineyards: South West, Cognac, Bordeaux, Provence & Corsica, Languedoc & Roussillon, Rhone Valley, Loire Valley, Savoie & Bugey, Beaujolais.
Layers of colour in the sky before me: indigo, peach, salmon. In the rear-view mirror, the gold was catching fire. As I drove down through the lonely, Mistral-chilled vines of Babeau-Bouldoux towards nearby St-Chinian, I was thinking about what Christine Deleuze of Clos Bagatelle had just said. ‘When you came to visit 10 years ago,’ she reminded me, ‘you said we needed to wait another decade for a market breakthrough. Today you’ve said we need to wait another decade or two. So when, exactly, wil ...
Our feet crunched through layers of dry oak leaves as we climbed a pebbly path towards the vineyards behind the farmhouse. Roots go deep here. Not just the tall oaks and squat vines, but families too. I walked the vineyards at Mas de Libian with Hélène Thibon, but it was her father Jean-Pierre that greeted me when I arrived. Hélène’s sister Catherine was out front with Bambi the horse, ploughing the sandier plots. Later, we tasted in the winery with Hélène’s son Aurélien. Three generations of a ...
When I first visited Bordeaux, the sleepy landscape of turreted stone châteaux and vineyards seemed timeless, with traditions so well established you felt they would go on forever. But new energy in this famous wine region is visible and audible: bees buzz and sheep graze in organic vineyards; brand-new cellars brim with sustainable features and wine fermenting in trendy amphorae; unusual grapes are gaining attention; and the number of women in key roles keeps growing. Yoga among the vines is s ...
