Isabal Côtes Catalanes rouge IGP 2021

A Carignan of cool-climate stature. Purple-red in the glass with violet highlights, intense and ripe on the nose, yet clear and fresh at the same time: blackberry and mulberry, sour cherry and a touch of cassis, alongside garrigue, fermented cardamom and dark tobacco leaf, topped by mint and dark stone.

The grapes grow in the north-east-facing single vineyard Las Trabasseres in the Piémont Pyrénéen on pure schist soil. Marjorie and Stéphane Gallet farm 25 hectares across twenty parcels from Montner. The village lies on the northern slope of the Força Real, sheltered from the scorching Mediterranean sun; altitudes of up to 400 metres ensure cool nights. The schist, composed of clay and silica, has a vertical structure and stores water for dry periods. The estate's average yield is 15 hectolitres per hectare.

Single-varietal Carignan from vines planted in 1913, making them 110 years old. Fermented spontaneously, aged in used oak. 12.5% vol., dry.

Fresh, juicy and intense, with the clear expression of crisp, juicy dark fruit, alongside stone, garrigue and fine wood. The deep-rooted old vines lend a pulsing schist minerality, carried by vibrant acidity. The wine has depth while remaining weightless, delicate and fine, with extract, a silky tannic texture and an ethereal minty overtone.

Miso aubergine, entrecôte on celeriac-potato purée with capers and black olives, or venison fillet on polenta with blackberry jus.

This wine was previously known under the vineyard name Las Trabasseres and is now called Isabal. The estate's biodynamically farmed schist terraces carry vines that are in some cases a century old; Roc des Anges takes its name from a white quartz rock found in the vineyards.