MEMOIRE D'AUTOMNES (Domaine la Tour Vieille)

DESCRIPTION

MÉMOIRE D'AUTOMNES is a dry white wine that has undergone a long oxidative maturation in oak barrels. It is a "vin de voile" like the Vin Jaune from Jura.
This wine is a wine of history, its production goes back to a distant time when the wine growers only made sweet wines. They used to put aside part of the fermenting must intended for the production of sweet wine and let it finish its fermentation in order to have a dry white table wine all year round.

MÉMOIRE D'AUTOMNES is therefore made by taking part of the fermenting must intended for Banyuls Blanc and using it to make a dry "vin de voile".

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 vines are planted dates from the Cambrian period and, compared to the Collioure terroir, it marks a break in sedimentation conditions with disappearance of the volcanic component and appearance of pelites, i.e. sedimentary rocks that have evolved in a lacustrine or marine environment.
They are called the série de Jujols, which shows a lower metamorphism than the série de Canaveilles (Collioure terroir).

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.

Part of the fermenting must destined for the Banyuls Blanc production is racked into oak barrels to continue its alcoholic fermentation to the end as well as its malolactic fermentation. The result is a completely dry wine with no residual sugar left.
It is then matured in half-filled oak barrels where it will undergo an oxidative ageing process identical to the Vin Jaune ones, lasting approximately 5 to 6 years.
Once the oxidative ageing is complete, the must is racked and bottled.