THE domaine Montirius vibrates to the song of the cicadas!
Focused on continuous progress, the Saurel family never ceases to innovate and explore new frontiers. During our tasting, the Domaine Montirius We've been given several announcements, some of them surprising. Find out in our article why we loved this... Domaine... using biodynamic methods!
A domaine amazing biodynamics
It was at the Vinocamp in Avignon in May 2013 that I discovered the Domaine Montirius. Always on the lookout for biodynamic wines, I had the pleasure of tasting their wines and meeting Christine and Manon Saurel (mother and daughter). The story of their domaine is astonishing, because in a very short time, the team has managed to put in place for this Côtes du Rhône a real biodynamic ecosystem and produce vintages that critics recognize (You will find a list of some of their best notes at the end of the article).
For now, we regularly taste their wines with the same pleasure, and we appreciate the exchanges around the practice of the craft!
The harvest dates are determined by the song of the cicadas.
When practicing the biodynamicsWe begin by observing nature. domaine, we noticed a real correlation between the first time the cicadas sing and the start of the grape harvest. Here's a handy indicator to help you eagerly await the first snip of the pruning shears!
And we can tell you that the harvest date is generally 2 months and 18 days after the cicadas start singing...
|
Year |
Cicadas singing |
The grape harvest has begun. |
Gap |
|
2015 |
21/06/2015 |
07/09/2015 |
? |
|
2014 |
24/06/2014 |
09/09/2014 |
2 months and 16 days |
|
2013 |
02/07/2013 |
19/09/2013 |
2 months and 17 days |
|
2012 |
18/06/2012 |
05/09/2012 |
2 months and 19 days |
|
2011 |
14/06/2011 |
01/09/2011 |
2 months and 18 days |
|
2010 |
25/06/2010 |
10/09/2010 |
2 months and 16 days |
|
2009 |
15/06/2009 |
07/09/2009 |
2 months and 21 days |
|
2008 |
24/06/2008 |
15/09/2008 |
2 months and 22 days |
...And this was true even in 2013, when the cicadas' song was heard a few weeks late. This year, the grape harvest is scheduled for next week, on Monday the 7th.
Vegan and gluten-free certified wines
You may not know this, but the use of egg white is not uncommon in winemaking: it's used to collect the residue. Satisfying vegan consumers is now possible because the domaine no longer uses egg white, neither casein Or milk protein during "filtering" or "gluing" operations. The domaine Montirius can now claim the label Vegan, a true British institution.
Similarly, it was following a question from an American wine taster that Mr. and Mrs. Saurel became interested in the presence of gluten in wine. They decided to use gluten-free inputs for winemaking and now benefit from the label Gluten Free which opens the doors to a American market always looking for better products for the body.
So two considerable advantages, which endorse a successful biodynamic approach, as well as the desire to appeal to Anglo-Saxon enthusiasts.
Excellent Wine Advocate ratings for the wines ofDomaine Montirius
The quality is undeniable in this remarkable Côtes du Rhône, which we thoroughly enjoyed tasting. Here are the tasting notes from the latest vintages of this wine. Domaine in Wine Advocate in January 2015:
- 89 points to our Montirius AOC Gigondas Terre des Aînés 2012 Red
- 91 points to our Montirius AOC Gigondas Confidentiel 2012 Red
- 90 points to our Montirius AOC Gigondas Confidentiel 2013 Red
- 89 points to our Montirius AOC Gigondas Terre des Aînés 2013 Red
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Cavissima thanks the Domaine of Montirius for permission to use its image bank.