Madiran Charles de Batz Berthoumieu 2015

Madiran Charles de Batz Berthoumieu, Tannat, oak aged, heady red wine. Madiran, Tannat, Cassoulet, these are words which get any Frenchman from the Southwest drooling! This is wine from that wonderful part of the world where despite all the goose fat, sausage and cheese they all eat, they live to 100. Some say it is because of the wine and more specifically the Tannat grape variety, high in anti-oxidants and life giving properties. The Charles de Batz from well renowned producer, Didier Barre is over 90% Tannat and aged for a good long while in oak barrels. The wine is named after Charles de Batz Castelmore d’Artagnan, a French soldier under Louis XIV, and inspiration for Dumas’ redoubtable character. The wine is a good opponent to sobriety, full, dark, heady and rich in goodness, you’ll want to finish the bottle with your Cassoulet despite your full stomach. Tannat ages forever as well so a case for the cellar wouldn’t go a miss and a quality ‘Vin de Garde’ at this price isn’t that common.

There have been vineyards in Madiran or Vic-Bilh (to give its original dialect name) since the 3rd century and, in the Middle Ages, pilgrims en route for Santiago de Compostela appreciated the wines.

Many producers believe that true Madiran has to be near to 100% Tannat but the appellation allows other grapes like Fer Servadou (called pinenc locally) and Cabernet Sauvignon in there. There are several fine growers in Madiran at the moment and Didier Barré ranks in the first echelon. These wines are perfect expressions of the notion of terroir – they are true to themselves, uncompromising and will develop in their own time. He even has a few rows of gnarled and knobbly 100 year old + Tannat vines. The local dialect uses the word Pacherenc – derived from paishet for 'posts in a row.' This refers to the modern method of planting vineyards in regular rows, using a post to support each vine. Vic Bilh is the name for the local hills that are part the Pyrenees foothills, along the Adour River south of Armagnac.