DOMAINE RIVES-BLANQUES 11300 Cépie, France Tel/fax +33 468 314320 E-mail : [email protected] www.rives-blanques.com Contact : Jan & Caryl Panman Vendange d’Hiver Lagremas d’Aur 2006 Eric Vialade, maker /Mauzac 10 - 12 hl/ha yield Taille: cordon de royat and gobelet Harvested by hand in two passages Fermented and aged (3 years) in seasoned French oak barrels 70 g/l residual sugar 4.8 g/l acidity Alcohol: 14% Bottled on the estate, May 2010 In 50 ml bottles.

THE HARVEST: The 2006 harvest began at the end of August, the earliest start-date ever recorded at Rives- Blanques. It was a complicated harvest, with intense heat alternating with heavy rainfall, but the remained impeccably healthy throughout. The Chenin blanc for this wine was picked in perfect conditions on October 17; a subsequent rainfall delayed the picking of the Mauzac until November 14.

VINIFICATION: Mauzac is a traditional variety of the region, dating from the Renaissance. Uncloned vines have been growing in Limoux for over 600 years, and to date DNA tests have been unable to identify their origins. It is normally used as a base for Limoux’s famous , Blanquette de Limoux. After vinification, the Mauzac for Lagremas d’Aur was blended with chenin blanc that had been harvested a month earlier. Lagremas d’Aur was bottled as a Vin de Table because the rules of the Limoux appellation do not permit sweet from these grape varieties. The vineyard is well known for its dry chenin blanc, AOC Limoux ‘Dédicace’, and its dry Mauzac, AOC Limoux Cuvée Occitania, but this is only its moelleux made from these varieties.

PRODUCTION : 3000 bottles (50 ml) MISE EN BOUTEILLE: May 2010 SUGGESTED PAIRINGS : as an apéritif ; with foie gras; with desserts such as cake, fruit and nut pies; can also accompany elaborate fish and chicken dishes, duck with peaches or oranges.

THE VINEYARD: Named after one of the snowcapped peaks of the Pyrenees dominating its horizon, Rive-Blanques is one of the few vineyards in the region specialising in white wines. - 22 ha: , chenin blanc, mauzac, sauvignon blanc - Geographically defined as ‘terroir Mediterranean’, its flora, fauna and climate show it to be more ‘Océanique’ in nature - Situated on a plateau 350m above the Aude Valley - Soils of silt, sand and clay with glacial moraine and pebbles - All grapes hand-harvested excepting for the Vin de Pays d’Oc, and all wines bottled on the estate.

Rives-Blanques has long been known for its environmentally responsible viticulture and was amongst the first in France to qualify for the diploma of Agriculture Raisonnée (sustainable viticulture). A portion is being converted back to organic (third year).