Gerard Bertrand Domaine de L'Aigle Pinot Noir 750ml

The Domaine de l’Aigle is close to Roquetaillade and Limoux in the foothills of the Pyrenees. The estate covers 31 hectares strategically planted from 250 to 500 metres above sea level, one of the highest vineyard sites in all of the Languedoc. Bertrand is quick to point out the conditions for pinot noir are similar to what they have in Burgundy: “an oceanic climate with continental influences, frequent rainfall and a wide temperature range.” The bouquet is spicy with notes of strawberry, light barnyard, and gamey sauvage. The attack is fresh and juicy with wild plums, cherries, and white pepper. Refined and long, it reminds me of a sturdy Pommard or Central Otago. It will age through 2022 as a minimum. A perfect chicken wine, this will also work with pork and cheese. Despite the climate, the wine is more New World with that extra lift of fruit and weight but all in the right way. It rests in French oak barrels for nine months before bottling.

Score: 91 points -- Anthony Gismondi, gismondionwine.com, 2019