Haut-Cérinhac

Haut-Cérinhac is the estate's most ambitious wine. It comes from a single plot — one and a half hectares of Syrah planted in 1992 by Henri Grézeau, on the highest point of the hillsides, where the clay-limestone runs deepest and the pebbles are rarest.

Late picking, low yields — rarely more than twenty hectolitres per hectare. A long four-week maceration, gentle punching down. Ageing lasts eighteen months in 600-litre French oak demi-muids, chosen for their tight grain. The wood never dominates: it accompanies, it rounds out, it lets the terroir through.

Candied dark fruit, black pepper, graphite, dried violet. The palate is dense, the tannins ripe, the finish endless — ten seconds of pure minerality. A wine that can be tasted young but reveals itself after five to ten years in the cellar. Made only in great vintages.

Food pairing: equal to the grandest tables — seven-hour leg of lamb, beef daube with olives, lièvre à la royale or roast pigeon with truffles. Lovers of mature cheeses will find it a fine companion to a Roquefort or a 36-month Comté. Open it at least two hours ahead, or wait a few more years.