Jeff Carrel - what's happening?

Ladies and gentlemen, someone has been busy. He is probably best known for his sumptuous Morillon, a pure Chardonnay from rolling hills south of Carcassonne available from Blakeney Wines from day one.

However Jeff Carrel, the self proclaimed “Eclectic Winemaker” has been extending his canon.

Before introducing his new cuvées let me remind you of his classic creations that have been sampled by his devoted followers for some vintages now. Firstly there is the aforementioned Morillon. This wine has an ever increasing number of admirers and shows the skill and craftsmanship of Jeff Carrel. It comes from the area between Carcassonne and Limoux, around the commune Leuc, close to the river Aude as it flows north away from the Pyrenees and it is this proximity to this cool, clear water course that creates the environment suitable to allow the grapes to botrytis. This cuvee is based on botrytised grapes that have been vinified dry. The vinification is with naturally occurring yeasts without any temperature control (22° - 28°). To achieve the desired malo effect the wine is matured on the lees in barriques and is only bottled once the “goût morillon” has been achieved. With a golden robe there are raisins and orange peel very present in the aromas. Full of character and richness this wine packs a punch of fully ripe fruit with a touch of caramel. There is a touch of residual sugar which just adds to the texture and mouth feel. It is a big wine, not aggressive but certainly large and as such has enough to take on and compliment some spicy, aromatic dishes. It is not normally done for white wines but try decanting and serving with a genuine paëlla.

The next wine that we have stocked and enjoyed over the past few years is La Bette. The spelling here is very important. Far from being a beast this wine is a gentle giant, a wine that hugs and caresses. It is a blend of Grenache, Carignan and Syrah grown and selected from various parcels in the area along the Agly valley. The vintages do vary as the parcels vary and the weather obviously is never the same. The current cuvée has an elegance that can be sometimes missing in other years but there are still bags of the trademark blackcurrant fruit. I find this wine that has nod towards the New World and demonstrates perfectly the skill of Jeff Carrel as an artist blending the different tones and nuances on his palette.

If La Bette has a modern feel then the cuvée Puyduval is a much more traditional wine but still with a twist. This is a blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot with a good helping of Syrah. This wine comes from an area northwest of Carcassonne from the vines that give us Cabardes. This is as far as the Languedoc extends westward and is the corner which benefits the most from the influence of the Atlantic. The region has plenty of bordelais grape varieties planted along with the more Mediterranean varieties – Syrah and Grenache Noir. This wine is beautifully presented and the rich and silky tannins give a fantastic structure to hang the dark berry fruit.

At the same time Jeff Carrel has been making some very decent entry price wines under the Villa des Anges label. These are single grape varieties, a Cabernet Sauvignon and a Sauvignon Blanc made for the Domaine Saint Roch near Limoux. These two wines have all the Jeff Carrel trademarks, fruit dominant and precisely balanced coupled with a pleasant simplicity they don’t demand any fuss and could be drunk from an old mustard jar at lunchtime.

So whats new?

Saveur Verte – this is a Muscat (a blend of Petit Grain and Alexandrie). There is a touch of sweetness but really only a very light brush. There is nothing delicat about this Muscat, yes it has that typical floral aroma and grapey flavours but this is a rugged Muscat. There is a density and complexity that sets it apart from some other dry Muscats I’ve tried from this region. If I say a man’s wine I know this is sexist and I am sure there as many women that drive a tractor as there are men who do flower arranging, it is that I think this wine is an appropriate aperitif for someone who is sat in their blue overalls after a hard days work in the field rather than for someone in a pale yellow cashmere pullover at a summer party.

BMV – this is a cuvée from the area called La Clape close to Narbonne. Like certain wines from Australia the letters stand for the grape varieties in the blend, Bourboulenc, Marsanne and Vermentino. This is a dry, nutty wine with a crisp, mineral finish. The Bourboulenc is a variety planted in this area by the romans, the fruit used for this wine comes from old vines, though not that old. The Marsanne and Vermentino are much younger and give the wine that typical taste of a Languedoc white.

Ornithology – this is blend of Grenache Blanc, a portion oaked, Muscat and Chardonnay. The grapes are harvested at the optimal period from selected vineyards belonging to Château Pena. Why Ornithology? Jeff Carrel, being eclectic named this wine after the Charlie Parker’s classic of the same name. You could argue that this wine is similar to the Parker composition, a blend of floral notes supported by a rich and complex background. Parker’s Ornithology is a contrafact, that is to say a new melody overlaid on a familiar harmonic structure, Carrel’s Ornithology has the fruity Muscat and fresh Chardonnay sitting pretty with the more classical Grenache.

Les Darons – this is a new red from Jeff Carrel. And why Les Darons? Because Daron is an old slang term for father or papa and as the fruit for this wine comes from vines which are older than forty years it seems appropriate. What are these old vines? Well 60% of them are Grenache, 25% are Carignan and the rest are Syrah and they are found around the commune of Laure-Minervois. This is a high and dry area so those old vines have roots that have gone a long way down searching for water. The yield is particularly low, only 35hl/ha where the permitted level for the appellation is 50hl/ha. The general rule is the lower the yield the higher the quality and for the price this AOP Languedoc (to give its European Union nomenclature as opposed to the French AOC Coteaux de Languedoc) is top, top quality. The wine is matured in vats for 7 months without the addition of SO2 and then bottled in April. There is a fresh crunch to the red fruits. Juicy and lively this is delicious and will become a favourite.