K-2 AOC Sans Sulfite Ajouté 2020

A cool Malbec that has been destemmed yet still carries the scent of stems and stalks. Beneath that, crisp red and blue berries, sour cherry and black olives, along with fir with needles, wood and earth, a touch of tobacco, tar and ink. Layered, agile and still reserved.

The grapes come from micro-parcels at 350 metres altitude within the Clos, on Tertiary-era siderolithic clay-limestone soil with a high iron content. The estate sits amid oak forests and wildflower meadows, with sheep grazing between the rows. Emmanuel Rybinski came from Normandy to Cahors, took over his in-laws' estate in 2007 and immediately converted it to organic farming. Since 2017, Clos Troteligotte has followed Demeter guidelines, using horn manure and horn silica, compost teas and preparations made in-house.

100% Malbec, known here as Côt, at a yield of 25 hl/ha. Hand harvesting is followed by destemming, spontaneous fermentation, gentle extraction and a long maceration; the winemaking itself remains sulfur-free. The wine then ages for twelve months in cellar amphorae, without fining or filtration. Only afterwards is a small amount of sulfur added: total sulfur stands at 12 mg/l.

Ageing in amphora shapes the structure and, above all, the texture. The dark, juicy fruit seems embedded in a fine haze of mineral dust. Lean, fresh, lively, young and unbound, at 12.5% vol. with a depth that reveals itself in an uncomplicated way.

Emmanuel Rybinski has devised his own alphabet for his cuvées, playing on the word Cahors: K-nom, K-or, K-lys, K-barré. The labels are designed by local artists. The Demeter logo appears on the bottle.