Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Run by the team at Lafite, Domaine d'Aussières has turned out an incredibly classy, elegant 2013 Corbieres that checks in with the top wines of the appellation. Based off 60% Syrah, 25% Grenache and the rest Mourvèdre, aged 40% in older Lafite barrels and 60% in vats, it offers ample cassis, toasted spice, graphite and peppery herbs in a concentrated, medium to full-bodied, perfectly balanced style. The tannin shows with more time in the glass, yet are ripe, polished and integrated. It’s a great drink today, yet will have a decade of longevity.
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Wine & Spirits
Fittingly restrained and buttoned-down for an estate run by Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) since 1999, this is an elegant Corbieres, chocolate-smooth and quietly spicy. Forty percent of the blend ages in new barriques from DBR's cooperage in Pauillac, which gives the wine plenty of tobacco and cedar scents, but the oak aging doesn't overpower the plummy fruit. Give it another few years in the cellar to meld and it will be an elegant companion to a leg of lamb.
With bold fruit flavors and accents of sweet spice, Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre form the base of the classic Rhône Red Blend, while Carignan, Cinsault and Counoise often come in to play. Though they originated from France’s southern Rhône Valley, with some creative interpretation, Rhône blends have also become popular in other countries. Somm Secret—Putting their own local spin on the Rhône Red Blend, those from Priorat often include Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. In California, it is not uncommon to see Petite Sirah make an appearance.
The Corbières AOC, established in 1985, is the largest in the Languedoc, and represents the South of France in transition. Though viticulture here dates back to the Romans, only within the last twenty years have Corbières wines begun to reclaim their reputation. Approved for reds, rosés, and whites, the region's vineyards cover a wide variety of elevations, soil types, and exposures. Hilly terrain and the Atlantic Cers wind moderate the Mediterranean heat, giving the wines balance and complexity; the best will go ten years or more in the cellar.
Reds represent 88% of the AOC’s production and are an assemblage of the sun-loving grapes of southern France. Carignan’s briars, Grenache’s berries, Syrah’s cherries and Mourvèdre’s plums allow for a wide range of styles, which are often influenced by the wild herbs of the garrigue. Corbières rosés, though only 9% of production, are serious wines and the small production of Rhône-variety whites are fresh and sea-influenced.
With eleven sub-appellations, Corbières is an AOC in the process of refinement. Corbières-Boutenac attained Cru status in 2005, one of only five in the Languedoc to achieve this highest ranking.