Mas de Daumas Gassac
The Family
Behind the Label
By
Dr Edward Fitzgerald
Looking out the car window into the September sunshine six
years seemed like a long time ago, but not much had changed.
I
remembered my first contact, with the Guibert family, the owners of Daumas
Gassac, when as a University student new to all things wine, I found myself
heading on holiday to the baked slopes of the Languedoc. Keen to explore the regions
vineyards, I dropped them a simple note, “can I come and learn about your
wines?”
Of
course, I didn’t expect much of a reply. Perhaps someone from marketing or a
secretary might get back to me eventually. Certainly, the leading wineries of
Bordeaux or
Barossa might have some small visitors centre with which to offer a commercial
welcome. But surely not even this in the depths of the Languedoc?
Daumas Gassac always was different though. The fairy-tale story of
their winery has been told many times before; of the chance discovery of a
unique soil, of the work to produce - as Hugh Johnson puts it - “the one
first-growth estate of the Languedoc”. They managed to sell the
unsellable at a time when the wines of the Languedoc were mass produced vin de table of the most forgettable
proportions.
So when I
received a personal reply from Samuel Guibert welcoming me to their mas I was surprised. Yet this human
touch has always made their wines special.
We turned the car off the tree lined “D” road and
followed the single-track lane away from civilisation into the depths of the
scorched garrigue scrub. Behind us,
the hills of the Montagne Noire, rose
precipitously from the Mediterranean coastal plain. In the clear September air
there were distant views of the mountains of the central massif. Outside, the
constant noise of crickets, just as it had been six years before and probably
always had been. Time moves slowly in these parts of southern
France. For most of the year it is
too hot to do otherwise.
Daumas Gassac nestles in the foothills of the Black Mountains,
hidden away in the Gassac
Valley some 35 kilometres outside
Montpellier. In
1970 Aimeé and Veroniqué Guibert, owners of a leather glove factory in Millau,
started searching for a place in the country.
The only property in the Gassac valley, the run-down little mas of the Daumas family, was not for
sale but the frail elderly sisters who occupied it could live there no longer.
With no family they were keen to move to nearby Aniane. Aimeé and Veroniqué fell
in love with and bought the tumble-down farm, helping the Daumas sisters
relocate to the local town.
The
precarious self-sufficiency of the farm meant a few old olive trees and vines
were already planted, but Aimeé dreamt of growing vines for winemaking, though
with no great ambition for a vin de
garde.
Following advice from the locals and experts in Montpellier, Aimeé read
the treatise on the origins of wine quality by Professor Enjalbert, the famous
wine geologist. With typical flare, he wrote and persuaded the Professor to
visit the old farm in the summer of 1971. The rest, as they say, is history.
Professor Enjalbert was amazed to identify a unique terrior - a soil of powdered
Mindellian limestone and a balanced microclimate in the valley quite different
from the hot plains just a short distance away.
The
Guibert family set about planting a vineyard of cabernet sauvignon vines the
following year and in a second master stoke convinced, with not inconsiderable
effort, the Bordelais Professor of Oenology, Emile Peynaud, to advise on
winemaking. The first vintage was 1978, the year of my
birth.
As
we wound through the hills to Daumas Gassac, we caught an occasional glimpse of
the old farmhouse on top of the low rolling hill. Suddenly, amongst the scrub, a
vineyard appeared. Cut out amongst the natural flora, their vineyards are
carefully placed to blend in with nature, almost to be a part of it. At the edge
of the vineyards, the cut earth still shows the glowing red soil that helps make
this place so special.
Arriving at the winery the smell of the garrigue was all enveloping; herb,
flowers, thyme hang rich in the air. Today there was another smell in the air -
the harvest finished yesterday, now fermentation had started and the air was
full of the aromas of wine must!
We’re met by Aimeé Guibert himself. As you could imagine from
someone who was so persistent in attracting the greatest wine talents to his
embryonic idea, he has a certain Gallic exuberance about him. He bounces down the stairs with his arms held
out to offer the warmest of welcomes. Eighty three years of age, acting like 43,
and not looking a year older than when I last met him. He has one of those
expressive faces, well lived in, though a sparkle in his eye that makes you
think we would still happily phone up any Professor anywhere for help if he
needed it. Only he doesn’t anymore. This year is his thirtieth vintage at Daumas
Gassac, and time has taught him well.
He apologised, his eldest son Samuel is late coming
back to join us. He’s on a ‘very important walk in the vineyard and can’t be
disturbed’. When he does arrive, Samuel confesses that yesterday was his wedding
anniversary and he’d taken his wife for a romantic walk through the vineyards
after spending last night celebrating. More than that, he’d even made sure the
vineyard harvest was finished especially so he wouldn’t be disturbed, “to show
her my love” he says with a broad grin. The Gallic charm of Aimeé is even more
fine tuned in black-haired his son.
We wander out into the garden, which merges seamlessly with
their oldest vineyard, Peyra Fioc. Sitting under the trees the temperature is
cool, shaded from a still fierce September heat. Their dog, a local stray,
lollops over to join us, looking for attention. This is not a place of stresses;
this is a place in touch with nature.
Samuel represents the future generation of the family,
but captures all of his fathers passion and enthusiasm. Set him off talking
about a subject and he speaks so strongly, with such feeling, you’re compelled
to listen. I mention how well his father looks, and the obvious quip comes back
fast “it’s the wine!”
Talking with Samuel about the family’s philosophy is
an animated conversation. More than many, the Guibert’s have adopted a very
holistic attitude: the wine comes from the land, they are simply there to guide
it. But there’s more to it than that. They firmly believe in the culture of
wine. Samuel argues that they have never had their eyes set on the top dollar
and that despite their origins they have never wanted to be garage winemakers.
Certainly their quantity of production would rule that out these days, but they
never want a wine that “is made to talk about but not to taste”.
Their winery is open to everyone, as I experienced all
those years ago visiting as a student. Samuel recalls the early days at wine
fairs, when his mother would welcome a student to the stand just as warmly as
millionaires. This welcome is not just reserved for customers. The pickers,
heading off home to Spain today, will all be back next
year. The Guiberts treat them as part of the family, sharing their food and wine
with them as the harvest work is done. Many are members of the same families and
have been returning to work here for years.
Daumas Gassac wines now sell at a premium in
France, with a significant
auction market throughout Europe for the older
wines. Their red is a true vin de
garde, needing time to develop and express its cedary, leather and garrigue
notes that have made it so famous. For them ‘medium term ageing’ is 15 years,
with a great vintage easily reaching its thirtieth birthday in fine condition.
Yet, given their philosophy of accessibility, the
wines are still offered directly to clients en primeur every year at a tiny
fraction of a good Bordeaux. “We want our wine to be drunk and to
be available” Samuel adds firmly. The recent two years of relative drought
(relative, as the Gassac valley microclimate always ensures some ground water)
means that production of the white wine has been significantly lower. The yields
(about 21 hl/hec in 2007) are fine for making a great wine now, but after
several years of low rainfall next year may be a problem financially. For now,
instead of raising prices they simply cut allocations. In fact, the en primeur
price hasn’t been raised years.
Samuel is now on his seventh vintage, having started
winemaking in 2000. It’s a family affair, with himself, his father and brother
running the show together with their cellarmaster. His father is still very much
involved and probably always will be. “He enjoys it too much” jokes Samuel,
though he acknowledges they will have their disagreements. Despite that, he
knows he has much to learn from his father’s experience.
With
the conversation turning back to wine culture Samuel becomes more animated. He
believes that “there is something of the character of the man in a great wine.
You can taste something of the personalities of the people who made it”.
The family know they have a great terroir but without
the right people to make the most of it, it would be nothing. It’s this link to
the people and the land that the family are keen to promote. “Daumas Gassac is
for people who enjoy the culture of the vine. With millions of bottles of wine
made every year you start to loose sight of the person making it”.
The proof is in his own cellar, he tells me, where the
majority of wines are those of friends and people he knows and respects. They
are concerned that many wines are becoming a choice between technology or
terroir, that wines are losing their individuality and personality.
“The winemaker is an artist”, Samuel asserts, pausing
for a second, perhaps fleetingly concerned that his passion is not understood.
“Not Van Gough, but someone who paints a picture with whatever they have”.
For the Guibert family, the picture is clearly painted in
every bottle of their famous wine.
Dr J.E.F. Fitzgerald - Copyright 2008
1 comment:
Bonjour Ed
What a greta piece you wrote on DG.
I still remember fondly our encounters at Oxford and Daumas Gassac.
I hope you are doing well in the world of medicine and still treating yourself with some good wines...maybe even from the Gassac valley.
Let me know if you are ever in our area again, it would be a pleasure to see you again.
Sincerely
Samuel Guibert
Owner & winemaker
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