Last Thursday our local café, Louis IV, had a pre-vendange (grape-picking) fête. The road in front of the café was closed to traffic, a band played, a pig was roasted and wine tastings were provided by four local vinters: Domaine Maurine Rouge, Mas de Dames, Yannick Pellitier and Domaine la Rabidote. Around 160 people were there to happily celebrate the prospect of great wines to come from this season.
Because spring was warmer and drier than usual, and summer has been the same, the picking is starting earlier than usual. Already some of the vinters are out very early in the morning hand-picking the grapes. The vendange normally starts in September when there is a mad flurry to get the grapes in before the autumn weather comes. This is mainly a red and rosé wine area, the main grapes being: Syrah, Carignan, Grenache and Mourvèdre and the terroir is schist. Just so you know; schist is a foliated metamorphic rock that is composed of mica minerals, according to www.geology.com. I'm sure that helps ...
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