Corbières

Traditionally known for its good-value rustic red blends, this Languedoc heartland region is forging a new reputation for quality and great terroirs. James Lawther MW heads south for a visit.

- James Lawther MW

IT’S THE SIZE and rugged beauty that assails you. Corbières is such a massive chunk of land and within its borders the terrain is so wild and resplendent. Rocky garrigue harbours bush-trained and trellised vines as well as pine, cherry, almond and olive trees, with fir and oak in the higher reaches. Some of the hillside vineyards seem incredibly remote, yet the major cities of Carcassonne and Narbonne to the north and Perpignan to the south are never far away, with the beach resorts of the Mediterranean adjacent to the east.

Viticulture has always been the mainstay of the region. When I first visited in 1997 there were just over 14,000ha of AP Corbières declared, producing an average 600,000hl, the equivalent of 80 million bottles. These days the figure stands at 10,600ha with an output of 390,000hl or 52m bottles, but it is still the Languedoc’s leading appellation by volume.

Given the size, there’s an inevitable contrast in terroirs. Soils are predominantly limestone-clay but there are zones of schist and sandstone, and enough variability to interest students of pedology. The climate is Mediterranean, but dependent on the proximity to the sea, altitude (50-500m), exposure and varying rain pattern – not to mention the passage of the humid sea wind, the Marin, or the dry northwesterly Cers – so the ripening varies, as does the quality and character of the wines.