Domaine de Montcalmes - White 2023
Domaine de Montcalmès is one of the great references of the Languedoc, located in Puéchabon, about thirty kilometers northwest of Montpellier. Created in its modern form at the end of the 1990s by Frédéric Pourtalié and his father Jean-Marie, the estate quickly established itself with a style of great finesse, inspired by the finest signatures of southern France. Frédéric Pourtalié, who notably worked at La Grange des Pères, Mas Jullien, and Alain Graillot, has built a unique identity based on long aging, precise ripeness, and a search for balance. While Montcalmès is best known for its great red from the Terrasses du Larzac, its white is a much more confidential cuvée. Produced in very limited quantities, it represents a small part of the estate's production and is among the rarest bottles to obtain each year. This Montcalmès White 2023 is therefore aimed at lovers of great southern white wines for aging, capable of combining breadth, freshness, and depth. It is a rare, serious, and gastronomic cuvée that shows a particularly noble facet of the Languedoc.
The Montcalmès White 2023 cuvée is based on an equal blend of Roussanne and Marsanne, two emblematic white grape varieties of southern France. The vines are planted on a clay-limestone hillside in Puéchabon, a terroir that brings structure, freshness, and a beautiful mineral sensation on the finish. The Roussanne gives the wine its aromatic intensity, floral, honeyed, and slightly spicy notes, while the Marsanne adds volume, richness, and a more enveloping texture. The two grape varieties are pressed and vinified together, in a logic of harmony from the start of vinification. Fermentation takes place with indigenous yeasts, in barrels and demi-muids, without trying to mask the expression of the fruit with demonstrative oak. The long aging of 24 months in oak barrels and demi-muids allows the wine to gain depth, patina, and complexity. In the 2023 vintage, this cuvée expresses a remarkable balance between southern richness, limestone freshness, and aging tension.
In the glass, Domaine de Montcalmès White 2023 reveals a clear, luminous golden robe, announcing a white wine of beautiful concentration. The nose opens on yellow fruits, apricot, ripe peach, white flowers, and fine honey, with nuances of soft spices, almond, and perfectly integrated wood. The palate is ample, creamy, and deep, but never heavy, thanks to a mineral freshness that stretches the wine with elegance. The material is generous, almost creamy, then tightens on a long, saline, and slightly bitter finish. It is a great gastronomic white, capable of standing up to rich dishes while maintaining beautiful precision. It will ideally accompany roasted lobster, scallops, creamy poultry, noble fish with beurre blanc, morel risotto, or aged cheese. Serve around 10 to 12°C in a large glass, after slight aeration, or keep for a few years to allow all its complexity to develop.
Grape varieties: 50% Roussanne, 50% Marsanne
This item is limited to 1 unit per customer.
