VIN DE FRANCE! Join us Thursday June 30th for a Trio of VDF Wines (06.16.22 6pm-9pm)


Share the Joy of Life with VIN DE FRANCE! 

Thursday June 30th from 6-9PM.

Domaine Benjamin Taillandier - "Six Roses" VDF Rose 2021

Region: Languedoc-Roussillon

Cinsault, Syrah, Carignan from a tiny (1 hectare) plot with shist, clay, limestone, sand, and marl soil. Average age of vines is 30 years, biodynamic farming, hand harvested, direct press, spontaneous fermentation in tanks, 6 months in stainless steel, unfined and unfiltered. Vegan friendly. Minimal sulfur.

Info from the importer:

"After finishing winemaking school, Benjamin spent some time working in a conventional winery. In 2004, however, he met natural winemaker Jean-Baptiste Senat and began working with him in his cellar. He was influenced by Senat’s ideas and techniques. After his stage ended, he knew that he wanted to make his wine with a similar philosophy one day.

In 2007 he settled in his family’s hometown of Caunes-Minervois, which sits between the ancient city of Carcassone and The Montagne Noir. He purchased 5.7ha of Grenache Noir, Syrah, Cinsault, Terret Gris and began working it organically, eventually converting all of it over to biodynamics. Each year he added a plot to his estate and now he works 9.5 ha all by hand and now fully Ecocert certified. He also runs a terrific wine bar downtown called Cantine du Curé which is open during the summer tourist season.

Benjamin feels that many of the wines in the Minervois AOC are too concentrated and alcoholic, and works hard to make wines that, while full flavored, are lighter, fresher and lower in alcohol than most average wines from the Languedoc. Indeed, there is a level of liveliness in this wines that you seldom see in the wines of the region, Benjamin is happily introducing people to the concept of Minervois “vin de soif”.

Domaine des Lampyres - "Anima Rouge" (Espira de L'Agly Roussillon) 2019

50% Syrah (21 year old vines) 50% Carignan (4 years old)

-Grown at 35m elevation, red clay limestone for the Syrah and schist for the Carignan

-organic farming, hand harvested

-two varietals were harvested on the same day and then underwent 10 day whole cluster co-fermentation in large steel tank. ambient yeast fermentation

-matured 8 months in steel (no oak at all), bottled unfined and unfiltered with the barest addition of SO2 just at bottling (10ppm).

La Vignereuse - Mayga Dark Pet Nat Gamay VDF 2020 

Truly a wild & different sparkling Red Bubbles from 40-year-old Gamay vines grown on a mix of calcareous soils & clay, (farmed organically by Marine Leys herself), 2020 yielded a very ripe and concentrated, dark-skinned fruit - so this one-off release was born (just 28 cases produced!) , Amarena cherry-like - expressive "Quinaquina" bubbly, smashing plums, hibiscus, all spice, electric pomegranate juice that is absolutely delicious.

Bring on the Ceviche & real Marsielle Bouillabaisse.

The grapes are hand-harvested, sorted, and direct-pressed. The spontaneous fermentation starts in inox tanks and is bottled unfiltered, just before the fermentation is finished to finish as a pet-nat in the bottle. Lightly disgorged & with absolutely zero sulfur added.

More info on the Producer:

Marine farms 5 hectares of hillside vines planted to Duras, Syrah, Braucol, Mauzac, Loin de l’oeil and Gamay.

Before starting the Vignereuse, she had worked for years behind the camera in film production across Europe, where she then moved to Canada, Ireland and eventually, Turkey. It was there that Marine found herself helping her employer plant a vineyard. She worked in the cellar and eventually handled the winemaking after studying in Beaune.