Aussières Le Milan Noir

The vintage

In the Languedoc, the cold, wet winter, very wet spring, and substantial rain in June, brought the benefit of well-replenished groundwater reserves, and the inconvenience of rampant mildew that affected certain areas in the region.
Thanks to a very hot summer punctuated by regular, short spells of rain, accompanied by generally dry air and favourable temperatures with a marked difference with day and night-time temperatures, the characteristic of this vintage that will be remembered will be the very high quality of the harvest.
This propitious weather enabled the grapes to be picked at optimal ripeness. During the harvests, the Syrah stood out as having particularly flourished in this vintage’s slightly unusual weather conditions.
2018 presented all the characteristics of a fine vintage at Aussières and in the Languedoc generally.

Location

The estate is nestled in the rugged hills just behind the Mediterranean coastline of Narbonne, in the South of France.

Terroir

The soils are very shallow and rocky on the slopes, and deeper and sandy on the plain. Yields are voluntarily kept very low in order to preserve the vines and ensure the production of high quality grapes.
The grapes come from flatter, lower lying parts of the estate where the deeper soils with underlying sandysilt provide the optimal growing conditions for grape varieties more associated with the Bordeaux region : Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc that contribute to the complexity of this blend.

Winemaking

The grapes are picked at optimal ripeness, destemmed and then vinified using traditional maceration methods.
The maceration period varies from 10 to 12 days with gentle extraction and fermentation at fairly low temperatures (around 25°C) in stainless steel vats in order to preserve the wine’s full aromatic potential. Ageing is then carried out in vats so as to keep all of the fruit’s freshness and purity.

Tasting

Beautiful garnet colour with glints of deep purple.
The nose is initially quite discreet, offering fresh almonds and hint of smoke, it then develops aromas of blackberries and star anise with aeration.
Rounded, delicate palate with silky tannins on the finish.

Alcohol content

Grapes

Syrah : 30 %
Marselan : 25 %
Merlot : 15 %
Cabernet franc : 10 %
Cabernet sauvignon : 10 %
Others : 10 %

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