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Boris· Lo Kyiv
Domaine du Clos des Fées
Le Clos des Fées
2016
4.0
Region
France › Languedoc-Roussillon › Roussillon › Côtes du Roussillon › Côtes du Roussillon Villages AOC
Type
red · still
Grapes
Monastrell, Garnacha tinta, Syrah, Cariñena
Alcohol
15%
Volume
750 mL
Tasting Notes(1)
4.0
Guessed Northern Rhône Syrah blind - close but not quite. Beautiful wine. Black fruit, black plum, sunflower seeds on the nose. Great balance, round mouthfeel, alcohol is present but well integrated. Creamy texture yet remarkably focused. Quite old-school and complex - no flash, just structure and quiet confidence. Layered, delicious, and genuinely interesting.
About
The eponymous cuvée of Domaine du Clos des Fées, a Côtes du Roussillon Villages assembled from old-vine parcels on clay-limestone hillsides above Vingrau. For the 2016 release, the blend lands at 50% Syrah, 20% Grenache, 20% Carignan, 10% Mourvèdre. Partial fermentation in new five-hectolitre demi-muids, manual punch-downs, malolactic in barrel, gravity transfers throughout. Around twenty months in new French oak. 15% ABV.
2016 was widely regarded as an excellent year across southern France and the Roussillon - warm and dry through the growing season, but with cool nights preserving acidity and aromatic lift. A classic rather than overripe vintage, producing wines with ripe fruit, balance, and structural backbone, in contrast to the more difficult heterogeneous 2012.
