Domaine Lafage, Tessellae Carignan Vieilles Vignes 2018

90 points Jeb Dunnuck
"Tasted out of bottle, the 2018 Côtes Catalanes Tessellae displays a spicy, complex style that carries vivid red and blue fruits, leather, licorice, tree bark, and peppery herbs aromas and flavors. Playing in the more medium-bodied end of the spectrum, it has solid purity of fruit, silky tannins, and a good finish. Enjoy this plump, pleasure-bent effort over the coming 3-4 years."

Vinous Reverie Notes
Carignan has had a rather tumultuous history in the south of France. Once seen as a necessary grape to spur the recovery of the region after the plague of phylloxera in the late 19th century, primarily for its ability to produce high yields, it has been largely replaced with “nobler” varieties such as Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre. This is unfortunate – for as challenging as the variety is to love when the vines are young – they are superb with half a century under their belt. Jean-Marc Lafage luckily resisted the call to uproot and replace this variety, and he possesses Carignan vines well over 70 years old on the schist soils of Aspres and Maury from which he started making the Tessellae Carignan at the urging of Eric Solomon. Organic. Variety: Carignan. Fermentation: Hand harvested, destemmed, cold pre-fermentation maceration, fermented in concrete. Aging: 12 months in concrete tanks (80%) and demi-muid (20%).