Vintage 2003 (26th VINTAGE)

Technical sheet

Denomination:

Vin de Pays de l’Hérault.

TYPE OF SOIL:

Red Glacial deposits

GRAPE VARIETIES:

– 65% Cabernet Sauvignon.
– 8.1% Merlot.
– 7.2% Syrah.
– 6% Cabernet Franc.
– 3.5% Malbec.
– 1.6% Pinot noir.
– 0.3% Tannat.
– 8.3% rare grape varieties : Nielluccio, Montepulciano (Italie), Saperavi (Géorgie), Tempranillo (Espagne).

CLIMATE:

Rain early in the year (96 cms water) filled the underground aquifers and ensured the Gassac valley springs ran all summer until the end of September. A burning hot summer (40°C and more in the midday sun) lasted 8 weeks. But the grapes sheltered under foliage, so not one was burnt, not one leaf singed.
Harvest: 10 days early, a dream harvest, ripe grapes, thoroughly healthy, not one damaged or mis-shaped.

HARVEST DATES:

29 August – 25 September 2003 (14 days).

Vinification:

Slow extraction, delicate pump-over and soft infusion vinification – long fermentation and maceration (20 days at least) in stainless steel tank – no filtration

MATURING:

12 to 15 months in oak barrel (1 to 7 years old barrels).

HARVEST:

100% Manual

Folin:

PH:

3.69

YIELD:

35 to 45 hl/ha.

ALCOHOL BY VOL.:

13.00% Vol.

TOTAL ACIDITY:

3.49

A few words on this vintage

« A truly vigorous, opulent wine! Abundant in character but nothing in excess; a wine in which fruit, velvet and alcohol are perfectly balanced »

A few words on the 2003 vintage

HARVEST NEWS

AN OPULENT WINE BORN OF FIRE!
This is a vintage that displays an opulent, ardent perfection, a vaguely sun-baked fruitiness and full-bodied vinosity.

2003 HARVEST NEWS

DRINK OR LAY DOWN

EVOLUTION OF THE VINTAGES & TASTING ADVICE:

Drink or Lay Down

TASTING HINTS

TASTING HINTS

To be served around 18-19°C (64°F).
Make sure to open your bottle a few hours beforehand, but always replace the cork.
Better still, decant the wine which will help bring out its complexity. But, do replace the stopper.

THE FIVE LIVES OF MAS DE DAUMAS GASSAC RED WINES

From the first autumn after bottling. A true basket of fruit, hints of what’s to come.

Period of fruit
Crisp fruit and tannins to the fore. Lasts from three to seven years. A delicious and invigorating wine to drink. An absolute must.
Period of youth
Velvety tannins appear, the fruit fades. This period lasts for seven to fourteen years. The wine reveals its true complexity.
Period of maturity
Between fourteen and twenty-one years. The fruity flavours fade giving way to tertiary aromas with hints of dried roses, woodland moss, truffles, game!
Period of plenitude
Over twenty-one years, most Mas de Daumas Gassac vintages will continue to evolve into magical flavours if laid down in a cool cellar with the right humidity. A reasure for grandchildren to discover in grandad’s