LesRochesSaintes,PicpouldePinet,2022

100% Picquepoul from this now-fashionable appellation. This local grape has the advantage of being slow-ripening: picked after the heat of summer has passed it retains freshness and flavour. In the old Occitan tongue Picpoul means “lip-stinger”, due to the grape’s natural acidity, but this wine is a lot friendlier than that: look on it as the Muscadet of the Mediterranean, albeit with more heft and flavour. There (and in Parisian bistros) it’s drunk with the local oysters and other shellfish from the Bassin de Thau, the large, shallow lagoon within sight of the vineyards.

Gilles Canton’s vines are about 5 kms from the Med, where the light sand of the coast give way to argilo-calcaire soils: those bring a bit more weight to the wine. Fresh and limey, with the merest saline note on the long finish.

Country: France

Region: Languedoc

Vintage: 2022

Grape Variety: Picpoul de Pinet

ABV: 13%

Size: 750ml

Producer: Les Roches Saintes