Eric Texier, Chat Fou, Vin de France 1.5L Bagnum
This ‘crazy cat’ wine has a real cult following, the blend of red and white grapes producing a joyfully bright wine, with crunchy red fruit, beautiful texture from the concrete fermentation, and incredible purity and drinking pleasure.
All fruit is organic, harvested by hand, partly de-stemmed and co-fermented with native yeasts in open-top concrete tanks. As with all Texier wines, no extraction techniques are employed, aged in concrete for 12-18 months, unfined, unfiltered and bottled with only the smallest amount of sulphur.
Declassified to Vin de France, as opposed to the more usual Côtes-du-Rhône due to its production method: a blend of 55% Grenache, 30% Cinsault and 15% Clairette from south-facing, granite and gneiss slopes in the Ardèche.
A man of conviction but by no means a zealot, Eric Texier likes to push the boundaries.
A playful wine which should be enjoyed with delicious food; pair with Mediterranean style mezze, grilled lamb, roast aubergines and good company.
