Notify me
2022 Pays d’Oc Cabernet Sauvignon “Les Traverses”
Château FontanèsCyriaque Rozier’s Bordeaux-meets-Languedoc red wears the basic Pays d’Oc appellation for bureaucratic reasons only—Cabernet Sauvignon is not permitted by local A.O.C. regulations. In all other ways, it is remarkable, beginning with a vivid crimson robe and aromas of raspberries and hot stones. Fifty-year-old Cabernet vines, tended with organic and biodynamic methods, yield soft, ripe red fruit with a hint of glycerine richness followed by a finish that is wonderfully dry and chalky, speaking to the vineyard’s limestone-based terroir.
—Dustin Soiseth
Wine Type: | red |
Vintage: | 2022 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Cabernet Sauvignon |
Appellation: | Vin de Pays d’Oc |
Country: | France |
Region: | Languedoc-Roussillon |
Producer: | Château Fontanès |
Winemaker: | Cyriaque Rozier |
Vineyard: | Planted in 1970, 5 ha |
Soil: | Clay, Limestone, Marl |
Farming: | Organic (practicing) |
Alcohol: | 14.2% |
More from this Producer or Region
2021 Banyuls “Rimage”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Imagine a red, Grenache-based Sauternes, full of earth and spice, and you’ll have a decent idea how delicious this Banyuls tastes.
2020 Pic Saint Loup “Guilhem Gaucelm”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
One of the great reds of the Languedoc. Rhône Valley, look out!
2021 Vin de France “Aleatico”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
This seductive red is supple and graceful on the palate, perfect for drinking chilled.
2022 Pic Saint-Loup Rouge
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Maybe it’s the biodynamic farming, but these wines always seem to have an extra gear when it comes to aromatics and sheer deliciousness.
Banyuls “Reserva”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
You will be surprised how well this dessert wine will pair with toasted almonds, bleu cheese or nice dark chocolate.
2023 Pays d’Oc Blanc “Les Traverses de Fontanès”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Melony, snappy, bright, and clean, this is a delightful everyday white with a refreshingly different flavor profile.
2022 Vin de France Rouge “Saint Jacques”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Equal parts Grenache, Carignan, and Mourvèdre, this boasts all of Maxime’s trademark elegance and silkiness.
2022 Corbières Blanc “La Bégou”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Just different and obscure enough to deliver the thrill of introducing someone to a gorgeous wine that is familiar, but new.
2021 Terrasses du Larzac Rouge
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
This wine marries the sunny influence of the south with chewy mountain tannins and a fresh streak of cool stone.
2023 Pays d’Oc Cabernet Sauvignon “Les Traverses”
France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Genuinely reflecting the down-home, country soulfulness we love about the Languedoc.
About The Producer
Château Fontanès
About The Region
Languedoc-Roussillon
Ask wine drinkers around the world, and the word “Languedoc” is sure to elicit mixed reactions. On the one hand, the region is still strongly tied to its past as a producer of cheap, insipid bulk wine in the eyes of many consumers. On the other hand, it is the source of countless great values providing affordable everyday pleasure, with an increasing number of higher-end wines capable of rivaling the best from other parts of France.
While there’s no denying the Languedoc’s checkered history, the last two decades have seen a noticeable shift to fine wine, with an emphasis on terroir. Ambitious growers have sought out vineyard sites with poor, well draining soils in hilly zones, curbed back on irrigation and the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, and looked to balance traditional production methods with technological advancements to craft wines with elegance, balance, and a clear sense of place. Today, the overall quality and variety of wines being made in the Languedoc is as high as ever.
Shaped like a crescent hugging the Mediterranean coast, the region boasts an enormous variety of soil types and microclimates depending on elevation, exposition, and relative distance from the coastline and the cooler foothills farther inland. While the warm Mediterranean climate is conducive to the production of reds, there are world-class whites and rosés to be found as well, along with stunning dessert wines revered by connoisseurs for centuries.
More from Languedoc-Roussillon or France
2022 Vin de France Blanc
Domaine Leon Barral France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Pic Saint Loup Rouge
Château La Roque France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2020 Pic Saint Loup Rouge “Sainte Agnès”
Ermitage du Pic Saint Loup France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Vin de France Blanc “Assyrtiko”
Château La Roque France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2023 Pays d’Oc Blanc “Les Traverses de Fontanès”
Château Fontanès France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2021 Collioure Rouge “La Pinède”
Domaine La Tour Vieille France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2021 Vin de France “Le Carignan”
Domaine d’Aupilhac France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2020 Collioure Rouge “Puig Ambeille”
Domaine La Tour Vieille France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Vin de France Rouge “Saint Jacques”
Maxime Magnon France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Collioure Rouge “Puig Ambeille”
Domaine de la Tour Vieille France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2021 Corbières Rouge “Réserve La Demoiselle”
Domaine de Fontsainte France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Corbières Rosé “Gris de Gris” MAGNUM
Domaine de Fontsainte France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Vin de France Blanc
Domaine Leon Barral France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Pic Saint Loup Rouge
Château La Roque France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2020 Pic Saint Loup Rouge “Sainte Agnès”
Ermitage du Pic Saint Loup France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Vin de France Blanc “Assyrtiko”
Château La Roque France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2023 Pays d’Oc Blanc “Les Traverses de Fontanès”
Château Fontanès France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2021 Collioure Rouge “La Pinède”
Domaine La Tour Vieille France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2021 Vin de France “Le Carignan”
Domaine d’Aupilhac France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2020 Collioure Rouge “Puig Ambeille”
Domaine La Tour Vieille France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Vin de France Rouge “Saint Jacques”
Maxime Magnon France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Collioure Rouge “Puig Ambeille”
Domaine de la Tour Vieille France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2021 Corbières Rouge “Réserve La Demoiselle”
Domaine de Fontsainte France | Languedoc-Roussillon
2022 Corbières Rosé “Gris de Gris” MAGNUM
Domaine de Fontsainte France | Languedoc-Roussillon
Where the newsletter started
Where the newsletter started
Every three or four months I would send my clients a cheaply made list of my inventory, but it began to dawn on me that business did not pick up afterwards. It occurred to me that my clientele might not know what Château Grillet is, either. One month in 1974 I had an especially esoteric collection of wines arriving, so I decided to put a short explanation about each wine into my price list, to try and let my clients know what to expect when they uncorked a bottle. The day after I mailed that brochure, people showed up at the shop, and that is how these little propaganda pieces for fine wine were born.—Kermit Lynch