Cuvée Romanissa Vin de France 2023 Matassa

Romanissa in Catalan is the place where rosemary grows—the name of a wild hill around Calce, in the heart of the Pyrénées-Orientales, where Grenache Noir and Carignan vines sink their roots into the Roussillon schist. Tom Lubbe works these two grape varieties with the same philosophy he applies to all his production: early harvest to keep alcohol low, spontaneous fermentation with indigenous yeasts, wood used as a container and not as an ingredient. Used tonneaux and barriques, nothing new, nothing that adds artificial structure. The result is an 11-degree red that does not behave like a southern wine: it has acidity, tension, a bittersweet and spicy aromatic complexity reminiscent of the Mediterranean garrigue from which it comes. A red that Tom makes to demonstrate that Roussillon doesn't necessarily have to be powerful.