The Wines of Roussillon by Rosemary George

Author:Rosemary George
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Infinite Ideas Limited

8

CASES-DE-PÈNE TO TAUTAVEL

CASES-DE-PÈNE

Château de Jau

Cases-de-Pène

www.chateaudejau.com

I first visited Château de Jau back in the last century when Estelle Dauré ran the estate. These days Estelle has gone on to pastures new and it is her brother, Simon, who is very much in charge. This is an old estate, going back ten centuries, when it was the Cistercian abbey of Jau. The remains of a twelfth-century tower still stand. There are periods of its history about which little is known, what Simon called ‘zones ombres’, or shadowy periods, but he supposed that the monks had disappeared during the French Revolution. Various owners had run the estate before the Dauré family bought it in the 1970s. At that time his father was a négociant, specializing in Vin Doux Naturel, who dreamed of making his own wine. Simon related how the crise de la quarantaine, a mid-life crisis, made his father realize that he wanted to return to the land, so he sold the family négociant business in Perpignan and came to run Château de Jau.

Simon took me for a drive through the vineyards. The estate totals 100 hectares of vines as well as extensive garrigue, with a variety of different soils – sand, schist, limestone – with most of the vineyards in the valley. There has been some extensive replanting as they work towards organic viticulture, and HVE, with bee hives, and sheep grazing in the winter. Simon considers himself lucky to have access to water, and flat vineyards, so irrigation is feasible. His average yield is a generous 45 hectolitres per hectare. He also has olive and almond trees, and even produces a Muscat de Rivesaltes vinegar. Red wine dominates the production, with 30 per cent white and just 5 per cent Vin Doux Naturel. When his father bought the estate in the 1970s, it only produced Vin Doux Naturel. In contrast, these days they have just 50 ares of Muscat remaining. ‘We have turned an enormous corner,’ observed Simon. ‘Vin Doux Naturel is a fantastic heritage, but with a niche market, making it so difficult to sell.’ He considers that ‘the climate is our trump card; it really helps for organic viticulture. We have wind and sun and are in a valley, with no neighbours.’ Most of the vineyards are mechanically harvested, with Simon ruefully commenting that it is not politically correct to enthuse about a mechanical harvest, but they are now so efficient.

They make an extensive range of wine, of which Simon gave me a selection to taste. La Jaja de Jau, a brand that was created 35 years ago, has a distinctive hand-written label by a Swiss artist. A Pays d’Oc Chardonnay, from bought grapes, was fresh and rounded; Simon prefers Pays d’Oc to Côtes Catalanes, observing that Côtes Catalanes is less visible. Château de Jau is a blend of equal parts Vermentino and Macabeo, with a touch of oak; it is fresh and pithy. Simon would like other varieties included in the appellation, such as Chardonnay, but Sauvignon Blanc is not worth the bother.

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