Limoux wine
[2] The Limoux wine region is located in the eastern foothills of the Pyrénées in southern France, south of the fortified city of Carcassonne.
[4] Records show that Livy traded in non-sparkling white wines from Limoux as far back as the Roman occupation of the region.
The first textual mention of "blanquette," from the Occitan expression for "the small white," appeared in 1531 in papers written by Benedictine monks at an abbey in Saint-Hilaire.
[1] Local lore suggests that Dom Pérignon learned to produce sparkling white wine while serving in this abbey before moving to the Champagne region and popularizing the drink.
In recent decades, appellation rules have been relaxed to allow an increased use of international grape varieties, which have partially replaced Mauzac.
Limoux winemakers began developing a unique style of still wines made from Chardonnay and fermented in oak barrels, sold as Vin de pays.
[5] Barrel samplings were featured at the yearly Toques et Clochers charity auction modeled after the famous Hospices de Beaune.
Prices of these Vins de pays soon exceeded what the French authorities thought was appropriate for this low classification, and in 1993, the Limoux AOC was revised to include the still wines made from Chardonnay.
While made mainly of Chardonnay, these wines are permitted to include Chenin blanc and must consist of a minimum of 15% Mauzac.
[1] The red wines of the Limoux AOC are composed of at least 50% Merlot with Carignan, Grenache, Malbec (known locally as Côt), and Syrah, making up at least 30% of the blend.
Blanquette de Limoux can contain three grape varieties: Mauzac (which must constitute a minimum of 90% of the wine), Chardonnay, and Chenin blanc.
This method involves traditional hand-crafted winemaking, with minimum use of modern technology such as stainless-steel fermentation tanks.
The resulting wines are typically low in alcohol (often less than 7% by volume), with sweet apple-like flavors and a slight sparkling fizz.
The origin of that decision occurred a year earlier, in 1989, when the producers of Limoux had to decide whether or not they wanted to maintain the traditional makings of Blanquette de Limoux based on Mauzac or relax the AOC regulations to allow the introduction of more Chenin blanc and Chardonnay to create internationally recognized flavors.
The growing popularity and high prices of Vin de pays still wines made from Chardonnays prompted the French authorities to revise the Limoux appellation.
Wines that Chardonnay dominates are more approachable in their youth and tend to have a rich, whole body with lemon and oak flavors.
