2022 Domaine la Calmette 'L'Espace Bleu Entre Les Nuages', Cahors, South West, France
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ABOUT THIS WINE
On this cool and superficial Kimmeridgian terroir, they have chosen to blend the 2021 vintages, marked by freshness and fluidity, and 2022, rich and concentrated, allowing them to combine the opposing qualities of two years with an unusual climate. This 21/22 is a balancing act of moving grace. Destemmed, ambient yeast fermentation in concrete tanks. Aged 2-3 years in used oak barrels. No fining, no filtration. Minimal SO2 adjustment at bottling.
The grapes for this vintage are born and ripen on a northeast slope, at the top of the hillside, overlooking the surrounding land. The 40+ years vineyard is rooted in Kimmeridgian limestone, which as it degraded formed a thin layer of reddish clay. It is a cool plot, surrounded by pubescent oak woods, where the summer fire arrives attenuated, almost tamed. Eastern exposition, at the highest elevation of the village, surrounded by forest. Drastic temperature variation between night and day.
ABOUT THIS PRODUCER
This is not your dad's Cahors! There are two sides to the appellation: the alluvial valley of the Lot river, and the plateaux, Causses as they are called locally. The latter is where you will find Cahors’ most captivating wines. There, the bedrock is Kimmeridgian with a top soil of clay, and there is another type of terroir, siderolithic, which is very iron-rich. Maya and Nicolas at Calmette are not alone in making great wine on the Causses. There is a gang —Fabien Jouves comes to mind immediately. In other words, Cahors from the Causses is becoming a thing and this is what this gang is showing us: With top-notch viticulture, much lighter extraction, and lower to no sulfur, the hard tannins that made this appellation so infamous are gone. A fog has lifted; behind it, is an entirely different edge, this one magnificent: the minerality, acidity, and majestically punk rock energy of Kimmeridgian bedrock. Of course, Kimmeridgian is most famous for being the bedrock of Chablis. These new Cahors, especially Maya’s and Nicolas’, are softly and beautifully infused reds with the spine of powerfully mineral white wines. They are contemporary, energetic, saline, stony, vibrant. They are VERY exciting. Then, on the siderolithic terroirs, the iron-rich clay, with its signature umami and blood, takes it to a whole other level of complexity. These are Grands Vins.