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On the ground & in the vines! Our team visits 5 Languedoc winemakers
The Princess & Bear team with Mélanie Estival (2nd from right) of Voûte de Verdus. White Grenache vines on the right. Cinsault vines on the left.
This month, our entire Princess and Bear team is "on the ground" exploring the Languedoc-Roussillon region, visiting our fabulous winemakers, and tasting the latest vintages so that we can bring you the best-of-the-best!
So far we've visited the appellations of Faugéres, Terrasses du Larzac, and La Livinière where we toured the vineyards and experienced the beautiful cuvées of five of our winemakers.
We walked the 100 year old vineyard of La Voûte du Verdu with Mélanie Estival, a fourth-generation winemaker (photo above). La Voûte's winemaking cave sits atop the Verdus River in the medieval town of St. Guilhem le Desert. Le Désert Blanc and Grand Saut are two of the wonderfully complexwines produced by La Voûte du Verdu.
In the video below, our team tours the reclaimed biodynamic Grenache vineyard of Simon and Monica Coulshaw of Domaine des Trinités in the Faugéres appellation.
You'll notice the "garrigue," the rich, often aromatic, vegetation that intermingles with the vines, and the schist soil which provides minerality and freshness.
The wines of Domaine des Trinités arrived in the most recent shipment and will be available for purchase soon!
Left to right: Steve Medwell (the Bear), Ioana Bucur (Princess & Bear's Tasting Room Manager), Monica Coulshaw of Domaine des Trinités, Carol Bailey (the Princess), Simon Coulshaw of Domaine des Trinités, & Rachael Beidler, Princess & Bear's Director of Operations.
We dropped in on another of our winemakers in the Faugères appellation—the delightful Pierre Urbain of Mas Nuy. Like the Bear, Pierre is a former surgeon turned Languedoc wine lover!
Beginning in 2014, Pierre started a range of PGI (IGP) wines, harvesting the grapes at night and making the wine in concrete vats to preserve the freshness and varietal identity of his wines. We carry three of these IGP wines, Robe Blanche, Quartz Rosé, and Athanor. We also offer La Catieda (Pierre’s top cuvée white) and Fou de Rec.
Our team with Pierre Urbain and the wines of Mas Nuy.
Pascal Riviere of La Jasse Castel is one of the women winemakers fueling the Languedoc wine renaissance. Our team caught up with her in the charming village of Montpeyroux where we shared an al fresco meal.
Pascal Riviere of La Jasse Castel (far right) and the Princess & Bear team
Pascal's vineyards include a century-old Cinsault, an ancient Carignan, a purebred Syrah on the edge of an oak forest, and a Grenache in the heart of the Seranne landscape. Her exquisite wines include Bleu Velours, El Abanico, Légrisee, and La Jasse.
Our final stop was in the Minervois-La Livinière appellation where our team (including Gigi!) shared a few laughs and tasted the incredible wines of winemaker, Michel Escande of Borie de Maurel.
Taste La Féline, Le Gypse, Belle de Nuit and Cuveé Sylla to see why Michel was dubbed “The Wizard of Feline,” by the international wine press!
Jul 25, 2019 at 3:19 PM
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A Laid-Back Summer Meal Meets A Lively White Wine [Recipe Inside]
July Wine and Food Pairing
We hope you're having a wonderful summer and finding time to relax and take in the simple pleasures. For us, this means delicious, fresh, easy-to-prepare meals paired with one of our extraordinary "undiscovered" wines from the Languedoc-Roussillon.
We invite you to try these easy, savory summer dishes: Quick Caprese with Garlic Crostini and Super-Easy Summer Salmon. Recipes below.
Compliment with 2018 Soif L'idéal—an "easy drinker" but with enough acidity to hold up to a great meal. Enjoy!
Featured Recipes
Featured Wine
Domaine Terrasses de Gabrielle
2018 SOIF L'IDÉAL
An "ideal" thirst quencher! The acidity of the Grenache Blanc and Vermentino blends with the honeyed pear and peach flowers of the Roussanne and Viognier to create a lively and engaging wine.
Winemaker Olivier Pascal of Domaine Terrasses de Gabrielle comes from generations of winemakers. He and his delightful, hardworking wife, Fabienne Los Huertos, tend the vineyards her family has owned for generations and work their creative magic in the cave where their small batch wines come to life.
Jul 21, 2019 at 3:20 PM
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How geology, history, climate, & culture find their way into your wine glass
The bell tower overlooking the vineyards of the Cru La Livinière
(photo courtesy of Syndicat du Cru Minervois-La Livinière)
La Livinière creates the kind of extraordinary and unique wines that inspired us to introduce Languedoc-Roussillon winemakers to the U.S.
La Livinière is a small "Cru," or "group of excellence," comprised of 41 winemakers within the Minervois-La-Livinière appellation. This Cru exemplifies the balance of creativity with tradition that is the hallmark of Languedoc wines. In fact, La Livinière was the first Cru to be recognized in the Languedoc!
Audrey Rouanet and Carol "the Princess" Bailey standing in Audrey's amazing high altitude terroir at Rouanet Montcelebre.
Winemaker, Franck Leonor of family-owned & operated La Rouviole. The wines of these La Livinière winemakers just arrived on July 10th!
The vineyards sit atop a vast limestone plateau (the causse), a vestige of a shallow sea that existed millions of years ago. Much of the landscape is too rugged for cultivation.
Limestone, sandstone, marl, and schist are part of the varied terroir. Syrah, Grenache, and Mourvèdre love ripening in the hot, dry climate and Mediterranean sun. By night, cool winds preserve the freshness and acidity of the fruit.
La Livinière winemakers each work their unique magic, altering aspects of maturity, maceration, fermentation, and container type to create wines with scents of ripe fruit, olives and even truffles! Fabulous!
Winemaker, Michel Escande, the “Wizard of Feline,” is pictured here. He and his Cru La Livinière domaine, Borie de Maurel, are part of the Princess and Bear family (check out his 2016 La Féline).
We invite you to experience the exceptional wines of La Livinière for yourself! The wines of La Rouviole and Rouanet Montcelebre just arrived and will be available for sale on our website soon!
Jul 12, 2019 at 2:07 PM
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Boost Your Summer BBQ with Chilled Red Wine [GIFT INSIDE]
Summer means BBQ season! Time to gather with friends and family to celebrate!
Spread the picnic blanket, fire up the grill, and share delicious wines while this beautiful season is in full swing!
We recommend red wine with many classic summer foods like barbecue, coleslaw, and potato salad (keep reading for the best potato salad recipe ever—really!)
If you're a Princess and Bear Wine Club member, the red wines you've received (La Diva 2015, La Pimpanela, and Grand Saut) are perfect with barbecued meats and chicken, especially when slightly chilled.
And now, our summer gift to you,
the best potato salad ever!
Jul 5, 2019 at 6:31 PM
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Birthplace of the Venus de Milo—the perfect setting for fabulous rosé & delicious mezedes
A visit to the island of Milos, a cultural and geologic treasure
Last weekend, we ventured out of our beloved Languedoc-Roussillon to visit the Cyclades Islands of Greece. But don't worry, our traveling companion was a lovely Languedoc rosé, Clos d'Elle 😍.
After a 2 1/2 hour drive to Barcelona and a 2 1/2 hour flight, we reached Athens then sailed out of Alimos marina toward the island of Milos in the Aegean Sea.
In this video, we are lucky to be sipping Clos d’Elle rosé on the Aegean Sea with a variety of delicious mezedes:
The gorgeous Clos d'Elle rosé featured in the video will arrive with our newest shipment of outstanding Languedoc and Roussillon wines in mid-July.
We're excited that Clos d'Elle has joined our Princess and Bear family! At a recent tasting of eight rosés, everyone, including a professional taster, picked Clos d'Elle as the most delicious rosé!
The Sarakiniko cliffs of Milos
The rosé, the mezedes, and the beautiful cliffs of Milos, sculpted by wind, sea, and sun!! It doesn’t get much better than this!!
We were reminded of another famous Milos sculpture, though she was shaped by human hands—the Venus de Milo, now displayed at the Louvre Museum.
Jun 28, 2019 at 9:33 AM
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Morel Mushrooms pair perfectly with this white wine...[Recipe Inside]
The Princess, Carol Bailey, indulging in one of her great loves
June wine and food pairing
Winemaker Pierre Urbain of Domaine Mas Nuy is passionate about everything he does! (We have asked him to slow down on his big boy motorcycle!) While in surgical training 25+ years ago in Brussels, he was introduced to what became a lifelong love of wine and winemaking.
Pierre completed his oenological studies and, in 2005, found his piece of heaven in the Languedoc. He purchased vineyards high on the south-facing hills of Faugères: perfect schist soil, perfect sun, and perfect vineyards for catching the drying winds of both the mountains and Mediterranean Sea.
He uses all-natural fertilizers and, if needed, organic compounds to combat mildew. He harvests his grapes at night and in the very early morning, hand selects grapes, and uses simple winemaking techniques (which are actually the most sophisticated) to create fabulous wines expressive of the famous Faugères terroir.
This month we've paired Pierre's top white cuvée, 2015 La Catieda, with Jura Style Chicken and Morel Mushroom Cream Sauce. La Catieda is slightly oxidized from time in the world-famous Stockinger barrels. It pairs beautifully with cream sauces and the earthy morel mushroom which, even today, is harvested only in the wild.
Bon Appétit!
Featured Recipe
Jura Style Chicken
with Morel Mushroom Cream Sauce
Get the Recipe
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Featured Wine
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La Catieda starts with pineapple and banana and is followed by lightly grilled citrus. A lovely mouth feel precedes a long, memorable finish.
This wine is aged in beautiful Stockinger oak barrels making it a "special" lightly oxidized wine and not adaptable to all foods. It is lovely with grilled fish, blanquette de veau, and hard cheeses.
Jun 20, 2019 at 10:04 AM
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Liberté d’expression? It's what makes our wines so special
Freedom of Expression
Freedom of expression for winemakers in France? Really? Yes!! You'll find it in the Languedoc-Roussillon and it’s what makes our wines so unique. What's behind all this liberté? The designation—Pays d’Oc IGP (Indication Géographique Protégée).
Most appellations require strict adherence to traditional winemaking rules which include use of very limited grape varieties. But the Pays d’Oc IGP allows winemakers to choose from 58 grape varieties adapted to his or her own special terroir!!
Relaxing blending rules, allowing single varietal wines, and granting other forms of freedom for winemakers unleashes creativity, experimentation, and FABULOUS results in the wines!!
The Languedoc-Roussillon region is full of mavericks, artists, cowgirls and cowboys, who are unbound by tradition but grounded in over 3,000 years of winemaking wisdom in the region.
Glacial soils (elevation 1,500 ft.) are ideal for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
This freedom, plus the Mediterranean climate, variations in altitude, and different soil types, results in a rich selection of unique and delicious wines that express a strong sense of "terroir," the land where the grapes are grown.
In fact, when comparing wines from the same varietal grape but from different areas, you can clearly distinguish the terroir of each. This makes tasting these wines especially fun and interesting!
The domaine Les Terrasses De Gabrielle is owned by two Languedoc winemakers who exemplify this freedom of expression and exceptional quality. We are proud to carry their wines!
Les Terrasses de Gabrielle
Winemakers Olivier Pascal and Fabienne Los Huertos of Les Terrasses De Gabrielle
Olivier Pascal comes from generations of winemakers. He and his delightful, hardworking wife, Fabienne Los Huertos, tend the vineyards her family has owned for generations and work their creative magic in the cave where their small batch wines come to life.
In addition to the traditional Languedoc grape varieties: Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre and Carignan for reds and Vermentino and Viognier for whites, in 2009 they planted Counoise and Sangiovese grapes. More recently, they are experimenting with Greek Assyrtiko grapes, as global warming creeps into the Languedoc weather patterns.
Jun 14, 2019 at 3:37 PM
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Recipe Suggestions for Fathers Day [Wine Pairings Included!]
Father's Day is just around the corner and we know you want to make Dad feel special! But before you buy him that 10 CD collection of Dixieland Jazz, we invite you to kick back and consider something simpler and sweeter.
One of the things we most appreciate about the Languedoc-Roussillon is the value people place on slowing down, coming together, and sharing a meal.
This Father's Day, why not create that joyful experience for Dad? You can still give him the CDs. But what he'll probably love most is being with you.
Below you'll find three delicious recipes for a special Father's Day meal.
Bon Appétit!
Recipe Suggestions for Fathers Day
Beef Chestnut Stew with Potato Scallion Purée
Wine Pairing:
A rich (even spicy!) red like
2016 La Jasse
Baked Chicken with Cheese & Lemon Custard
Wine Pairing:
A full-bodied white like
2014 Cuvée Sixtine
Duck Rillettes Salad with Orange-Ginger Vinaigrette
Wine Pairing:
A silky, smooth red like
2016 La Dame
Join Our Wine Club
For an experience Dad can enjoy throughout the year, treat him to a Princess and Bear Wine Club Membership. With each quarterly shipment, he'll explore a rich variety of wines from the Languedoc-Roussillon, an area critics have called "the most exciting wine region of the whole of France."
Many of these vignerons have embraced organic, biodynamic, and chemical-free viticulture.
These wines are so unique, they're only available in the US through The Princess and The Bear.
Choose from our Amphora, Cathar, or Mediterranean collections.
Member benefits include:
- Quarterly curated shipments of hard-to-find artisanal wines
- Live video Q&A events with winemakers, chefs, and sommeliers
- Food pairing recipes and tasting notes from a Languedoc expert
- Option of all red or all white available upon request
- Free shipping and 15% off individual bottles from our shop — anytime
Memberships start at $29/month
(billed quarterly)
Jun 9, 2019 at 7:23 AM
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A visit to Camon - Village of Roses
ON THE ROAD WITH THE PRINCESS AND THE BEAR
A VISIT TO THE VILLAGE OF CAMON, AND A TOUR OF DOMAIN GIRARD, IN THE MALEPÈRE APPELLATION.
Our love of the undiscovered wines of the Languedoc-Roussillon is matched only by our love of the region itself.
We invite you to share in our ongoing adventure as we explore the beauty, history, and culture of the south of France. Meet the colorful personalities and innovative winemakers at the heart of the winemaking renaissance!
Last weekend our adventure took us to Camon, a fortress village also known as the Village of a Hundred Rose Bushes.
Festival of Roses
Ten years ago the mayor of Camon gifted every resident with a rose bush. To commemorate the gift, the town holds an annual Rose Festival showcasing roses of all shades and varieties. As we strolled ancient streets lined with colorful blossoms, classical music drifted from the cloister of an old abbey. This brief video offers a glimpse of our delightful visit to Camon. Gigi makes a guest appearance!
The Vineyards of Domaine Girard
After the Festival of Roses, we toured the vineyards of one of our new winemakers, Philippe Girard of Domain Girard.
Philippe is a fourth generation winemaker. His vineyards are located in the Malepère appellation in the foothills of the Pyrenees and overlook the plain of Lauragais, the hills of Razès, and the medieval city of Carcassonne.
The vineyards are comprised of Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Chardonnay. These are Continental grapes, more suitable for a cooler Atlantic climate, rather than the hotter Mediterranean conditions typical of much of the Languedoc.
Because of the change in altitude, the point at which a vineyard can flourish in this area ends abruptly. Philippe's vineyards are right on that boundary, giving him both ideal and unique terroir for making fabulous Languedoc wines. This photo captures the point at which the vineyards end and the other crops, such as grain, begin.
A sign near the Ariege border in the Malepère appellation that marks the altitude limit for cultivating productive vineyards.
The Bear (right) with fourth generation winemaker Philippe Girard of Domain Girard (left). We're thrilled to be bringing you Philippe's Pinot Noir and Chardonnay this June!
May 29, 2019 at 11:07 AM
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[Recipe] Halibut is in prime season! And it's excellent with this wine...
May Wine and Food Pairing
Each month we offer you a new pairing of a savory recipe with one of our extraordinary "undiscovered" wines from the Languedoc-Roussillon.
It's our way of saying merci for joining us on this adventure into a region rich in history, beauty, innovative winemakers, and culinary treasures.
This month we've paired a classic blend of white varietals, 2017 Eime De Vinhem, with a sumptuous Baked Halibut and Lemon Basil Aïoli recipe.
Halibut is in prime season until July, so enjoy the feast before it’s over!
Bon Appétit!
Featured Wine
Domaine Jougla
2017 Eime De Vinhem
Occitan for "Love of Wine," Eime De Vinhem is a blend of Vermentino, Grenache Blanc, and Viognier. The vines are situated within the ‘garrigue,’ so rosemary, fennel, and thyme contribute to the aroma. Expresses pear and white flower blossoms in the nose. Rich and generous in the mouth. Incredibly drinkable!
Featured Recipe
Baked Halibut
with Lemon Basil Aïoli
Savor with Domaine Jougla
2017 Eime De Vinhem
Additional Paring Note: Eime De Vinhem also goes well with cheese and crackers, or Chilled Oysters on the Half Shell with Yuzu Mignonette.
May 16, 2019 at 3:37 PM
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