Collection: Le Clos des Fées
France - Roussillon
« I had a vision that in Roussillon, we could produce great wines equal to the best. Now this dream is becoming a reality »
A restaurateur and wine writer in previous lives, Hervé Bizeul practices a ruthlessly controlled viticultural regimen in the dramatically rocky, yet clay-permeated limestone environment north of Vingrau. Add to this a fruit-pampering vinification, and the result is wines that have turned heads every bit as much as does the local scenery and brought Bizeul well-deserved recognition as a beacon of Roussillon quality. Hervé tries to « search for and retain the fruit to make rich, Mediterranean, flavoursome wines traditional to this area »
The Estate
Lost in a desert of garrigues, bordered by walls of dry stones, Le Clos des Fées looks like a picture-perfect postcard. The stones were taken out of the vineyards one by one, by hand or pulled by a horse, then patiently and skillfully stacked by generations of wine growers from another era.
The Terroir
The vines are growing on 7 different areas. Each area has its own special terroir. There is some rare soil with alluveal red clay which contain a high proportion of rolled stones like those to be found in Châteaneuf-du-Pape. These acid soils give exceptional intensity to the Mourvèdre grape. The schistose marls of the cretaceous era produce shallow black soils which allow the vines to root deeply. This is the kingdom of Grenache noir and Syrah. On the limestone plateau where the wind blows more than 250 days per year, the elders favored planting Grenache Blanc (100 years old plots).
The Vinification
The vinification is traditional. The ageing depend about the cuvee. For the Sorcière the wine age in stainless steel tank, the Vieille Vigne is aged in oak barrels and the Clos des Fées is vinified and aged in oak barrels.
What exactly does the word «Clos des Fées» mean?
In French, a «Clos» is a small parcel of vines surrounded by walls. A Fée is a «mythical being, in general a woman, with magical powers» which she uses with the help of a magic wand. Le Clos des Fees is a vineyard where the fairies would have lived, if they existed.
