Maccabeu Domaine Ledogar 2019

Maccabeu Domaine Ledogar 2019, biodynamic, dry white, very clean, elegant, fresh, slight bitterness on the finish, beautifully balanced white wine. Maccabeu is the same grape as Viura in Spain, what they make white Rioja from. However, the wine produced in the south of France is often very different to the poweful, often oaked wines of Northern Spain. The Ledogar brothers approach is totally hands off in vineyard and cellar, they even got rid of the tractors in favour of horses which is better for the soil. This superb dry white marries, clean crisp elegant fruits and tingly acidity with underlying depth and texture with a slight bitterness to the finish. It is easy to say white wine for fish but this one really is. Firm white fish or shellfish with provencal flavours of herbs, olives, tomatoes etc would be superb.

Domaine Ledogar is a 22 hectares estate on the Terroir of Corbieres Boutenac – near Carcasonne – laboured on by two brothers Xavier and Mathieu, winemakers for 4 generations. Xavier Ledogar, who has always loved nature, started working in the vineyards when he was 12. In 1997 he took over the Domaine on his own and built a new cellar to start making his own wine rather than selling the fruit to the cooperative in the age old French peasant tradition. From the outset, Xavier has been committed to Biodynamic production, eschewing all chemical and mechanical inputs to the point that they even use horses and donkeys for ploughing and natural weed killers! Pure wines of great character are the result, a must try for lovers of southern French wines.