2020 Léon Barral Faugères Valinière

WINEMAKER: Didier Barral
REGION: Languedoc, FR
VARIETY: Mourvèdre, Syrah
VITICULTURE: Organic/Biodynamic

"Mourvèdre is the grape that Didier adores and his “Valinière”, named after a small stream, and made from 80% Mourvèdre and 20% Syrah, has deep purple colour and a glorious nose that includes dark fruits, warm leather, dark chocolate, fine floral notes, black olives and all the spices of the orient. The mouth follows the nose, conveying a suppleness, where density and power are controlled and shows an acidity that completes the wine, gives it equilibrium, finesse, length in the mouth as well as a great capacity to age. Fabulous wine and indeed one of the best red wines in all France; noted critic Jacqueline Frederich calling it the 'Chambertin of the South'" - Andrew Guard

Barral is the ultimate biodynamic farmer. He allows his cows and sheep to graze amongst his old bush-vines during the winter months as this provides them with the most natural form of fertiliser! In the winery, everything is natural, from the wild yeasts which ferment his grapes to the absence of sulphur or filtration. The resulting wines are pure, unadulterated expressions of the rugged, scrub-covered hills of this part of Mediterranean France and the perfect cold weather reds.

In his words, "Nowadays, farmers feed the planet but destroy it at the same time. Sometimes they think they are doing the right thing by ploughing too often for example, which eventually damages the soil structure. We have to observe nature and to understand how micro-organisms operate. Then we see that tools and machinery can never replace the natural, gentle work of earthworms, insects and other creatures that travel through a maze of tunnels, creating porosity and aerating the soil, making it permeable and alive. There‘s grass in our vineyards and amongst the grass, there are cows and horses: a whole living world that lives together, each dependent on the other and each being vital to the balance of the biotope".