LA PINÈDE 2020 (Domaine la Tour Vieille)

DESCRIPTION

LA PINÈDE is a blend of three red grape varieties with a majority of Grenache noir from the vineyards located at the foot of the Tower which dominates Collioure and which gave its name to the estate; the yield of these vines is around 35 to 40 hl/ha.

TERROIR

The soils that make up the Domaine La Tour Vieille vineyard are among the oldest terroirs in Europe, since their formation dates back to the primary era, and more precisely a period ranging from the Ediacaran (-635 to -540 My) to the Cambrian (-540 to -488 My).
The rocks of the Collioure and Banuyls vineyards are of the metasedimentary type, i.e. a sedimentary rock formed by sediments deposition and solidification, then subjected to an increase in temperature and pressure during tectonic movements which will create modifications in its mineral composition as well as its structure.
The terroir on which the LA PINÈDE vines are planted dates from the Ediacaran period and is made up of schists called schistes de Canaveilles, which are more or less metamorphic, as well as feldspathic sandstones and black schists.
This schistose bedrock, which is exposed on the surface, forces the vines to take deep roots in order to find their water resources, which are essential in summer.

WINEGROWING & WINEMAKING

The Côte Vermeille vineyard is organised on terraces and requires exclusively manual and sustainable winegrowing works as it limits the interventions in the vineyard.
The low rainfall, the sunshine and the tramontana wind are the major assets of the region which allow the estate to obtain grapes of an excellent sanitary quality without having to use synthetic phytosanitary products.
The vines are therefore cared for and treated in accordance with the Organic Agriculture specifications, even if the estate is not officially certified by Ecocert.

The grapes are harvested by hand when they are at optimum ripeness, usually between the end of August and mid-September, with first the Grenache, then the Mourvèdre and Carignan.
Once they arrive at the winery, the grapes are sorted, cooled, destemmed and placed in temperature-controlled vats where they macerate for 5 weeks under temperature control for a gentle extraction of aromas and tannins.
Alcoholic and malolactic fermentations take place spontaneously during the maceration phase.
When the maceration phase is over, the must is pressed and the juice is matured in vats for a few months to keep its fruitiness.
It is then racked, lightly filtered and bottled.