Les Volets Malbec

Region

Haute Vallee de l Aude, Southern France, France

Vintage:

2024

Producer:

Boutinot

Grapes:

Malbec

Wine Description:

Vibrant ruby hues gleam out of the glass. The first notes on the nose are of crushed blueberries which then develop on to reveal an intriguing bitter-sweet character of crème de cassis with a touch of underlying parma violets. Fine red-fruits fill the mouth; raspberries and a touch of dark chocolate truffle.

A joyful expression of Malbec from higher altitude vineyards. A range of wines from cooler terroirs, handcrafted by our winemaker, Guillaume Létang. “Les Volets” translates to “shutters”. The kind of window shutter you find on almost every house in the south of France. As the shutters are absolutely typical of the villages of the Haute Vallée de l’Aude, so too are these wines completely expressive of the region. 

Haute Vallée de l’Aude is an area where altitude plays a vital role in tempering the climate. Separated from the Mediterranean by a range of coastal mountains whose elevation and gradient prompt higher diurnal ranges and allow cool winds from the Atlantic to blow through the vines. The region’s climate resembles South-West France more than the other hot, dry coastal areas of Languedoc. Malbec has a natural affinity in the Haute Vallée de l’Aude. The fruit for this wine was sourced from the lesser-known territory of Pays Cathare near the towns of Carcassonne and Limoux. Here the argilo-calcaire subsoils give elegance and unique flavours to the wine. While Malbec is traditionally big, bold, and used for blending in this area of France, we chose to present this wine varietally with little oak influence. This is a wine to appreciate for its difference. This is a wine to appreciate for its difference. It is grown and vinified sustainably, achieving HVE3 certification.

Food Suggestion:

Delicious with steak and meats from the grill. It works with seared tuna, too.

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Press Reviews:

2017 Vintage
Sommelier Wine Awards 2019
By The Glass Trophy
Sommelier Wine Awards 2019
Gold
2015 Vintage IWC 2017 
 Bronze
Sommelier Wine Awards 2017 
 Silver

Producer Description

Boutinot's story starts in 1972 and Paul Boutinot, having had a brief flirtation with shifting half a tonne of bricks up and down a ladder, decided the glamour of the building industry wasn’t for him. Paul quickly got into something else: wine.

After five years learning his trade in London, he headed back up north to Greater Manchester to join his father’s successful restaurant business. Frustrated with the quality of wine that could be sourced in the UK, Paul took matters into his own hands. He hired a van, trundled over to France, picked up some wine (it was legal back then) and sold it back in his parents’ restaurant.

Paul's reputation quickly begin to grow and it wasn't long before other restaurants were asking for him to sell them wine and the company was started in 1980 as a wine supplier. Boutinot have furthered their reputation for great value wines by starting to produce wines themselves. They have partnered with Italian producer Adria Vini, have their own vineyard holdings and winery in France and vineyards in South Africa, and now a large percentage of Boutinot's portfolio is their own production.

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