Grand Vin du Roussillon
By Bruno CAZES - Oenologist & Craftsman
"Le Clos Louis is the expression of a history, of a place,
of a terroir... through a wine".
The Story
My family has been involved in this noble profession since the end of the 19th century. Our land is in Roussillon, a region in the south of France bordered by the Mediterranean. It's a region steeped in history, with a long tradition of wine-making. Roussillon is the French part of greater Catalonia. We know this region like the back of our hand. I've been lucky enough to explore all the terroirs in this area, from the Côte Vermeille to the Aspres, the Roussillon plain and the Agly valley.
Le Terroir
Each of these terroirs has its own personality, secret, qualities and weaknesses. Among the many terroirs of the Roussillon, one in particular caught my attention. Today, this place is what I consider to be a jewel, a gift from the Gods. It's a place that combines the excellence of a black schist terroir with high-quality Mediterranean grape varieties.
The exposure is ideal, south-south-east, surrounded by garrigue at an altitude of around 250 metres and a Mediterranean climate that allows the grapes to reach full ripeness.
This vineyard is located in an area close to the Cathar castles and the village of Maury. This ancient territory, formed by the Pyrenees mountain range, dates back over 110 million years. It gives all its richness to traditional Mediterranean grape varieties.
The Agly valley, 300 metres above sea level and 30 kilometres from the Mediterranean.
Grape varieties
The grape varieties are those that have shaped the history of this region. Most of the grapes are Grenache Noir, with some Syrah, Mourvèdre and old Carignan.
The vines bear the imprint of the years, an average of over 70 years.
The wood of the vine is tortuous, with only three or four buds each year giving birth to the shoots that bear the grapes promised to make the great Clos Louis wine; small quantities of a grape bursting with all that concentrates the best of Roussillon.
The vineyard covers 5.5 hectares.
Respect for Production
In Maury, we are fortunate that nature provides us with grapes of the highest quality.
Our job is to reveal the qualitative potential contained in each berry.
To achieve this, we have chosen to optimise the production of our wine through meticulous ripeness control, a traditional vinification process that allows the wine to express itself, and controlled ageing to accompany the life of our wine.
Wine-making
When September arrives, our teams harvest the Grenache Noir and Syrah grapes at the moment of optimum ripeness. The hand-picked grapes are carefully sorted on arrival at our winery.
We need our grapes perfectly ripe so that we can place them in our barrels for vinification.
The wine ferments in these barrels for a period of 8 to 10 days. Maceration of the berries can last up to 4 or 5 weeks, depending on the quality of the wine. It is during this phase that the wine is enriched by the aromatic bouquet of black berries and the aromas of the garrigue, which are very present in this wine.
The marc is then pressed and the wine is put directly into barrels for a long ageing period of around 18 months. During this period, the wine matures, the tannins harmonise and the overall balance is achieved.
So it's almost two years after its vinification that Clos Louis is packaged in our bottles.
A singular wine
Our Clos Louis red represents over 80% of our total production. The first vintage was 2014.
In 2020, we brought out the white Clos Louis made from old Grenache and white Carignan vines.
We're just as enthusiastic about both colours.
We share these wines, which speak of a privileged region, an ancient terroir of black schist, Mediterranean grape varieties and a sunny, low-humidity climate.
It's nature that offers us this moment of sharing.
Distribution
Clos Louis can be ordered directly from the estate or from the best French wine merchants.
Finally, a few cases are also exported, where you can find these wines on the best tables of the world's top restaurants.
Le Clos Louis, a journey to the Mediterranean...
Louis
Louis & Bruno CAZES
Each year, this cuvée is produced in a limited number of a few hundred 12-bottle cases.
Bottles from each vintage are released from our cellars in the second spring of the following year.
The wines travel to the four corners of the world to deliver their singularity and offer a part of the Catalan dream.
Direct property sales by reservation only.