Coume del Mas - Banyuls Grand Cru 2005

Bettane & Desseauve

About the wine:

The estate's first Banyuls Grand Cru. Complex, powerful, delicate, the sweetness is framed by a tonic freshness, the balance is maintained and ends on a long, expressive, slender finish. A fine exercise in style.

About the domain :

Established in Cosprons, a hamlet near Port-Vendres, Philippe Gard has chosen to set himself apart from the majority of the region's players, and his wines are in his image. With his many diplomas, this agricultural engineer and oenologist arrived in the region in 1997, after a long period of wilderness camping. He set up his own estate in 1997, which today covers 15 hectares. While so many others make sweet wines by tradition and heritage, he has chosen to make them, focusing on the top end of the market. Long ageing periods, and above all with the lees of the vintage, not those of the previous ten years! As for the Collioure wines, which account for 80% of production, they offer a range of identities, sometimes by the sea, sometimes at altitude, but always with the same precision on the palate.

Guide Hachette des vins

About the domain :

An agricultural engineer, Philippe Gard first worked for the Auxerre Chamber of Agriculture, then for the Bordeaux Chamber of Agriculture. But his passion is the vine, and in 1998 he and Nathalie settled in Cosprons, near the cove of Paulilles, where he now farms 14 hectares of terraced vineyards. He launched his Coume del Mas label in 2001. Intense and refined, his Banyuls and Collioure wines were an immediate sensation.

Robert Parker - Wine Advocate

About the wine:

With its deep coffee color, the 2005 Banyuls Grand Cru is a deep, rich, full-bodied wine with a chocolate dessert character. It delivers notes of espresso, figs, caramel and spices. It's a touch chocolate-dominated, but loaded with a ton of fruit and nicely balanced.

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

About the wine:

Intense aromatic personality; one imagines dry fig, cocoa, warm brick, powdery clay... The material that carries these suggestions is concentrated, piquant, with an almost feverish brilliance (high volatility!).

About the domain :

In love with his terroirs, Philippe Gard has settled in the hamlet of Cosprons, between Banyuls-sur-Mer and Port-Vendres. He resolutely manages a 13-hectare estate of old vines, remarkably well-situated. All the wines are barrel-fermented, and his knowledge of his plots enables him to adapt to the vagaries of climates and micro-climates from year to year. His expertise in winemaking and ageing has rapidly placed his production among the most ambitious in the sector. It deserves the attention of aficionados of Côte Vermeille wines: all its wines are exciting and have great ageing potential!