Domaine of the Bee Maury Sec AC Roussillon AC, Southern France – 2021

Like many wine lovers, English Master of Wine Justin Howard-Sneyd had a dream of owning a vineyard. Unlike most of us, he did something about this after a visit to the ruggedly beautiful area of Maury in the Roussillon region of Southwest France, and started Domaine of the Bee in late 2003.  Justin was – and remains – convinced of the huge quality potential of the old vine Grenache vineyards in this area, and now owns 5 hectares of ancient Grenache and Carignan vines in the Appellation now officially known as Maury Sec AC.

Maury is famous for big, deep-coloured Grenache, often with a ‘chocolatey’ note, and loads of ripe kirsch-like fruit. This was very much the style for the AOP Maury Vin doux naturel for which the valley used to be famous. Justin and his team hand-pick their grapes a little earlier than average to avoid the baked, figgy characters that can creep in, and then conduct cold macerations and some “whole bunch” fermentations to retain maximum ‘freshness’ and drinkability in the wines. The wines then mature for 16 months in a mix of 225lt and 500lt barrels, 25% of which are new, before bottling.

2021 was a fantastic vintage for red wines in the Maury region, with a perfect warm and dry summer and some much-needed rain in early September. This wine is a blend of 60% Grenache and 40% Carignan grapes from vines averaging 80 years old grown on a limestone and schist hillside. It has a deep, dark colour and an explosive nose of dense, ripe fruits – mulberries, smoky plums and dark cherry Kirsch – with hints of wild garrigue and chocolate. The palate is succulent and beguiling, with incredibly forward ripe fruit, full body, and grippy tannins. Svelte and finely textured, it is a perfect blend of the delicacy and perfume of Grenache, with the depth of colour, higher acidity and firm tannins of Carignan.

Best enjoyed with grilled red meat, hearty stews, barbequed food, and hard cheeses.

350 cases were produced. 2023 – 2035