One of life’s little pleasures of being down here in the Roussillon is the proximity of so many very good vineyards, and the availability of so many excellent wines. Here in Canet-en-Roussillon, we have the beautiful nineteenth century Château Esparrou situated on the edge of Canet-Plage, and the Domaine des Hospices where the Benassis family have been producing wine in the centre of the village for five generations. A little further away between Canet and Perpignan is the Mas Miraflors, where the Lafage family have been engaged in wine making since 1798. In my opinion some of the best wines in this region originate from the vineyards of the Domaine Lafage.
The Domaine has three vineyards in the Roussillon, the one surrounding Mas Miraflors is just a few kilometres from the sea, being part of the ancient flood plain and has a strong clay and limestone soil. Along with the Mediterranean climate and the northwesterly wind, known here as the Tramontane, these factors make this vineyard ideal for producing the fruit for some of the fine white Grenache and Rosé wines, for which Domaine Lafage is renowned.
The northern part of the Roussillon plain, near the River Agly, provides the Domaine with some of its more opulent and elegant wines, as this vineyard is situated in an area of limestone and black slate, and is exposed to the strong north winds.
The third vineyard belonging to the Domaine is situated at an altitude of four hundred metres in the foothills of the Pyrenees in marbled slate soil, surrounded by scrubland. Here the vines are planted in terraces following the contour lines, and benefit from a warm climate which is occasionally swept by the Tramontane.
Different grape varieties benefit from different conditions, and you will see that it is not just the grapes which make a good wine, but the soil, the rocky sub-soil, the wind the altitude, and of course the sunshine all have their part to play.
I believe that wine tasting is a very individual thing. Personally I love red wine, and went for years not drinking white wine. Since I discovered the wines from Domaine Lafage, I have learnt to appreciate both white and rosé wines as well. In fact two of my favourite wines are the Lafage Côté Floral, a lovely white wine which has a beautiful intense flavour of exotic fruits, and a very delicate floral note. The recommendation of the Domaine is to drink it with Sushi, which we did, but believe me it is delightful with fish, chicken and asparagus too.
The other wine which is an absolute delight to drink, is the very pale rosé, the Lafage Miraflors. Some would say that this is a vin gris or grey wine, not having that rich pink colour associated with many rosés. We enjoyed a bottle (or was it two?) last week with friends sitting on the beach at a local beach club over a Tapas lunch.
It goes without saying that the red wines from these winemakers are also superb, and a favourite of this household is the Lafage Nicolas, which is 100% Grenache Noir from vines whose average age is sixty five years. This Côtes Catalanes wine goes well with strong meaty dishes and cheese, although we often drink it with fish too. Maybe by now you are wanting to try these wines. Sadly they are very difficult to obtain in the U.K. You may be able to buy them online, but most wine stores do not stock Lafage. For me, that’s another good reason to continue visiting this area, but who knows, if we continue to remind the staff at the Domaine that people in the U.K. enjoy good wine too, they may decide to expand their market there. Then again Brexit may make that more difficult. We shall have to see!
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