Articles

The wines of Roussillon 2024

by  |  29-02-2024

When planning research trips for this year, I was quite surprised to find that the last full review of Roussillon wines was all the way back in 2021. I say “surprised” as I’m in contact... more »

Res Fortes – Merlot Madness 2022

by  |  15-02-2024

I was recently up in the Roussillon region to research a new report on one of my most favorite regions outside of Spain, although ‘Catalunya Nord’ is only technically not Spain due to historical treaty-isms.... more »
Photo by Torredemer Mangin

A new side to Roussillon, Torredemer Mangin

by  |  20-11-2023

In what seems like another life at this point, I visited the Roussillon village of Vingrau for a wine fair that I feel wasn’t repeated again and was definitely stopped once 2020 arrived. This is... more »

In The Glass: Domaine de Bila-Haut – L’Esquerda 2018

by  |  22-07-2022

My fascination with Roussillon, France isn’t just because it’s the land that was historically Catalunya Nord (Northern Catalunya), but more that it’s neither here nor there. It’s most definitely not Languedoc (to which it is... more »

10 Roussillon red wines to know right now

by  |  23-11-2021

While my 2021 Roussillon report came out a few weeks ago, I’m sure there are many people still confronted with a bit of a “wha?” reaction when digging into the region. With some 450+ wineries... more »

A book review of “Wines of the Roussillon”

by  |  19-10-2021

I have something of a soft spot for underdog wine regions which probably explains my pursuit of Roussillon. Existing for years as “le petit vin du Languedoc”, it was this dismissing it as “lesser Languedoc”... more »

The wines of Roussillon in 2021

by  |  11-10-2021

The wine region of Roussillon has been short shrifted for some time. Usually regarded as the dangly bit after Languedoc and a hyphen, wine journalists will overlook it for the much larger Languedoc. At best,... more »

A Southern European selection of François Lurton

by  |  03-05-2021

François Lurton is but one member of the vast Lurton family, long-established in Bordeaux. If you’d like to read up on their history, I’d recommend having a look at this article as I would but... more »

A look back at the 2012 vintage in Catalunya & Roussillon

by  |  01-09-2019

The other day someone wrote to inquire about the 2012 Clos Mogador and what my impressions were of it. While I enjoyed drinking it when initially released, I realized that instead of just talking about... more »

Skipping on schist – Domaine Augustin

by  |  10-06-2019

As that almighty crow flies, it’s a mere 12km to the French-Spanish border from Colliure. In reality however, it’s actually 25km of twisty roads that take nearly an hour to cover if holiday camping vans... more »