Domaine Ciry Cattaneo

Domaine Ciry Cattaneo was created in 2015 by David Ciry, a consulting oenologist by profession, and Marion Cattaneo, a chocolatier. This small organic estate of around nine and a half hectares is based in Laure-Minervois, between Carcassonne and Narbonne, where vinification and ageing take place. Its guiding principles: viticulture under organic farming and work carried out artisanally and by hand, both in the vineyard and in the winery.

The vines are divided between two very distinct terroirs. In Siran, above the Minervois La Livinière cru, high-altitude plots between 350 and 400 metres occupy a south-facing combe, with deep clay-limestone soils that limit water stress. In Laure-Minervois, the soils are sandstone. The original vineyard had five plots: grenache noir, syrah and carignan for the Minervois AOC, malbec and tempranillo for micro-cuvées in Vin de Pays d'Oc. These old vines, 30 to 80 years old, produce fresher wines than classic Minervois. In 2019, the estate expanded by 2.7 hectares in Laure-Minervois, with new plantings in Siran.

The grapes are harvested by hand, sorted in the vineyard and then sorted again in the winery. Vinification is carried out parcel by parcel: each plot is divided into lots according to ripeness, vinified and aged separately in small stainless-steel tanks. Extraction is mainly through punch-down, with macerations of three to six weeks. Added sulphur is kept as low as possible, never exceeding 70 mg/l in total. Ageing takes place in tank or, for one year, in barrels for the Les Hirondelles cuvée and the micro-cuvées.

Deus Sol, the estate's first white, comes from 65-year-old grenache gris on sandstone, aged on lees and partly in barrels. Malabestia, a grenache noir from old vines at 400 metres altitude, matches David's definition of Minervois: power, roundness, spices and herbs. Sang Neuf is a malbec from the Combe Marie plot, and Les Hirondelles, the premium syrah-dominant cuvée, remains confidential.