Banyuls: a unique wine in a unique Mediterranean climate

Diary #4 by Elise Gaillard, winemaker at Domaine Madeloc: In Collioure, we can say that there is a unique climate, a Mediterranean seaside climate, which the terraced topography makes even more exceptional. People often talk about salty notes on the Collioure, but is it due to the sea wind? What is a salty touch? Is it a quality for the wine? Elise Gaillard talks to us about the secrets of the Banyuls and the sea entrances.

How does the Mediterranean climate influence Roussillon wines?

The Mediterranean climate is quite simple: a dry climate 11 months out of 12, and heavy rains in November. And of course, wind (the Tramontane) almost all year round.

In Banyuls, there are some additional subtleties. The heat is always moderated by the wind and there is very little amplitude of temperature between day and night, due to the immediate proximity of the sea. To this, we must add a particular phenomenon: when the prevailing wind - the Tramontane - does not blow, it is the sailor who takes over. The sailor is a wind coming from the sea (as its name indicates) and it is charged with humidity. When it blows, it can announce the rain, but more generally, it generates zones of mist that the first slopes directly on the sea will capture for several hours in the morning, and sometimes all day long.

The sea entrances bring freshness to the white Banyuls of Domaine de Madeloc

At Domaine Madeloc, we chose (since we had the possibility!) to plant these slopes with white grape varieties (grenache gris, roussanne and vermentino). These grape varieties are very sensitive to heat which will "burn" the acidity of the berries. By inflating the berries with a little moisture from the sea, we imagined we could protect the grapes and keep a little more freshness and acidity. This trial proved to be quite conclusive, since we observed a clear difference in freshness between the vines on the seaside and the vines at altitude, which we will reserve for the white Banyuls (this is not necessarily applicable for the reds).

There is however a counterpart to this sea spray: it can be catastrophic in areas too close to the sea. The sea spray that is loaded with salt can burn the vines which, as a result, remain weak. Thus, on one of our plots, we let canisses grow, to protect the first vines attacked by salt.

The sun, the sea wind and the shale soil, three indispensable elements for a Banyuls.

The tasters agree to speak of iodized notes, even salty notes on the Collioure, from there to consider that the sea wind is the origin, it is only a step. This is personally not my opinion. We find these iodized notes throughout our terroir, and I think it is the influence of the schist soil, coupled with our sunny climate that brings these notes. Nevertheless, I need the sailor in my work on the white Collioure.

Elise Gaillard (winemaker at Domaine Madeloc)