Old vineyards, new owners

Yesterday I joined a group of friends for a visit to Domaine La Martine which has just been acquired by a Belgian couple, Bruno Claeys and Ilse Bouchez. 

​Planted around 15 years ago, the vineyards occupy around 10% of an estate located in a peaceful valley south-west of Limoux. ​After a tour of the cellars and a hot drive into the vineyards our hosts treated us to an excellent lunch and a tasting of their organic wines. ​

​I wrote about the sparkling wines from Limoux in my book ‘Menu from the Midi’, but the area also produces some excellent still whites, along with some fine reds. ​​After a long and careful study of La Martine’s different offerings – work which took me several hours – I concluded that my personal favourite was a 2019 white wine called Cuvée des Pyrénées, a lightly-oaked blend of chardonnay and viognier.

Thank you Bruno and Ilse for your warm welcome.