£81.50
Vermentino grown on gravel and marl a half-hour from the Mediterranean - a clean, easy-going Languedoc white wine from the Côtes de Thongue.
Pink grapefruit first, then pear, then a squeeze of lemon right at the end. Pale straw in the glass, and the whole thing is soft and cool on the palate before that citrus lifts the finish and tidies everything up. There is no weight to argue with here and nothing hiding in the background - ripe fruit and fresh acidity in even measure, which is a harder trick than it sounds at this price. If you drink Pinot Grigio or a pale Provence white, this is the same easy afternoon with a bit more to say for itself. Serve it not too cold, around 12°C.
Top food pairings:
"Vermentino is fast becoming a favourite grape, for us and our customers. This perfect balance between fruitiness and crisp freshness is spot on. I'd enjoy this with plate of simple cooked fish and seasonal greens."
Domaine Monplézy sits on a hill about 4km from Pézenas, garrigue on every side, roughly 30km inland from the sea and swept by the tramontane and the mistral. Made by two families - Jean Sutra de Germa founded the estate in 1920, the Gil family arrived from Spain in the 1940s. Anne and Christian took the estate independent in 2000 and converted the whole thing to organic in the same year; their son Benoît makes the wine now. Clay-limestone with quartz gravel, inside a Natura 2000 zone.
Monplézy have been off chemical pesticides so long that the insects came back, and the crested hoopoes birds arrived back after them. They nest in the old vine trunks the family leave standing on purpose. They're such a feature of the winery that they used their image on the labels of their premium wines.
This Languedoc white wine is organic, properly made and genuinely refreshing, pour it cold with something off the grill and it will be very satisfying indeed.
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