2020 Nicolas Carmarans Maximus

WINEMAKER: Nicolas Carmarans
VARIETAL: Fer Servadou
REGION: Aveyron, FR
VITICULTURE: Organic

"The Nicolas Carmarans Maximus is a fresh, vibrant red wine that sees 16 days of carbonic maceration using whole bunches to ensure the freshness and flavour that you expect from a wine made using this process. The 2020 vintage is definitely the best yet! It is low in alcohol (11.5%), lighter, fresher and more elegant than before. But flavour has not been sacrificed. This is in line with our tastings of this wine since Nicolas started producing it – it just keeps getting better and better.

The wine is made from 100% Fer Servadou (also known as Mansois and Braucol) picked from vines that range in age from 20 to 50 years. This grape variety is local to the region around the Aveyron and then in an arc down to the area around the town of Gaillac which is just north of Toulouse. This wine is aged in old barrels and bottled without the addition of any sulphites to retain the freshness. It can be drunk as an aperitif or matched to quite a wide range of foods." - Living Wines

Nicolas Carmarans makes wines from indigenous grape varieties clinging to steep terraces in the remote Aveyron region of central France. For many years he ran the delightful wine bar in Paris called Café de la Nouvelle Mairie. It, as its name suggests, is a meeting place where people go to sip on good wines, eat interesting food and solve the problems of the world. He sold it recently to concentrate on his vineyard in the Aveyron in south west France where he makes stunningly delicious natural wines from local grape varieties such as Fer Servadou and Negret de Banhars.