Vintage 2018 (33rd VINTAGE)

Technical sheet

Denomination:

IGP Saint Guilhem-le-Désert – Cité d’Aniane.

TYPE OF SOIL:

White Lutetian Limestone.

GRAPE VARIETIES:

– 35% Viognier
(origin of the vine: Georges Vernay – Condrieu).
– 22% Petit Manseng
(origin of the vine: Charles Hours – Béarn).
– 16% Chardonnay
(origin of the vine: Comptes Lafon).
– 10% Chenin Blanc
(origin of the vine: Domaine Huet – Vouvray).
– 17% rare grape varieties : Marsanne, Roussanne, Petit Courbu, Muscat Petit grain, Muscat d’Alexandrie, Gros Manseng, Semillon (France), Fiano (Italie).

CLIMATE:

Describing this vintage is not an easy task. First a wet winter with one of the biggest snow fall ever seen, then the rain kept on falling until the beginning of summer. Within the first 4 months of the year, our total volume of 2017 rainfall was reached! Summer came has a blessing with a perfect weather: dry and very sunny. Deciding on when to start the harvest has never been this hard due to the impact of the year climate.

And yet Mas de Daumas Gassac grand vin blanc is showing an incredible finesse. It is masterpiece of white flesh fruit & tropical notes coming from 21 varieties that express their diversities in one magical symphony!

HARVEST DATES:

3 September to 8 September 2018.

HARVEST:

100% Manual.

Vinification:

Skin maceration for 5 to 7 days. Fermentation in stainless steel tank.

MATURING:

2 to 4 months in stainless steel tank.

Residual Sugar:

9.0

PH:

3.26

YIELD:

35 hl/ha.

ALCOHOL BY VOL.:

13% Vol.

TOTAL ACIDITY:

4.03

HARVEST NEWS

2018, AN HISTORICALLY LONG HARVEST PERIOD!

The domaine’s 41st harvest began on Monday 3 September and ended on Friday 28 September 2018. 19 days of picking for 50 ha of vines spread over 30 plots. We always wait until each grape variety reached perfect ripeness, offering a unique expression of their flavours: this is what makes each vintage at Mas de Daumas Gassac so exceptional.

The Harvest News

DRINK OR LAY DOWN

EVOLUTION OF THE VINTAGES & TASTING ADVICE:

Drink or lay down

TASTING HINTS

The two lives of Mas de Daumas Gassac White Wine

Laid down in a cool cellar (14°-16°C, 57-60°F) even the oldest can happily wait with no problem for many years. However, being laid down in warmer temperatures will speed up the wines’ maturity.

First life

To taste within the first three years if you appreciate wonderful fruity flavours.
Drink our white wines as an aperitif or with a meal. They drink beautifully with most dishes.

Second life

Quite a different wine from the third or fourth year! Its youthful fruitiness will have disappeared, to be replaced by new flavours reminiscent of "sherry" or old "Sauternes", a touch "oxidative" with great finesse.
Take care: if you are not looking for this type of wine, slightly paradoxical as it ages, drink our white wines within the first couple of years.

Tasting hints
- Serve around 10-12°C (51°F). Do not over chill.
- Open the bottle an hour before serving, but always replace the cork. Decanting encourages wines to express their full complexity but, always replace the stopper.