Domaine Les Aurelles - Coteaux du Languedoc Aurel blanc 2017

The 2017 Aurel, made exclusively from Roussanne, is impressively full-bodied with an endless finish, in the style of the great white wines from the northern Rhône Valley. It is now an essential benchmark for the Mediterranean region.

Near Pézenas, about thirty kilometers from the Mediterranean, the Domaine des Aurelles, covering just under ten hectares, boasts a dreamlike terroir, one of a kind, blending basalt and gravel in a breathtaking landscape that stretches all the way to the Cévennes. Solen, the first cuvée, surpasses most Languedoc wines. Aurel is the flagship wine. Both cuvées are released after a significant period of bottle aging and are not aged in oak. Aurel Blanc is unique, released after several years in the cellar: this is a truly great wine for fine dining. Recently taken over by Matthieu Gufflet (Château Guiraud in Sauternes), a new chapter is beginning.

Over the past 30 years, the estate founded by Basile and Caroline Saint-Germain has become a standard-bearer for the Languedoc’s revival and a driving force for Pézenas. In late 2022, the estate was acquired by Bordeaux entrepreneur Matthieu Gufflet, owner of Château de Callac in the Graves, Château Guiraud in the Sauternes region, and Château des Bachelards in Fleurie. Two years later, Basile Saint-Germain permanently handed the reins to Sandrine Garbay, director of the Gufflet estates, who continues the collaboration with winemaker Margarethe Chapelle. The 8.5 hectares of vineyards, cultivated biodynamically without certification, are planted on Quaternary terraces covered with rounded pebbles and scattered with basalt flows from the volcanoes of Auvergne. The grapes are then vinified in a bioclimatic cellar, whose energy efficiency supports the aging process. The harvest, subjected to rigorous sorting and aged for 4 to 5 years, yields a small selection of wines of rare purity.