IGP Agenais was established in 2011 to capture the typicity of the wines from the Lot-et-Garonne area of Southwest France. This rosé from the lovely Christophe Avi, our source of Buzet wines, is made from his younger Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon vines. It offers nuanced notes of minerally orange blossom, wet stone, and lime leaf, with lots of grip.
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Wine Description
Reviews and Scores
90 Points (2022 vintage review) -Eric Guido, Vinous
“The 2022 Rosé Christophe Avi Agenais opens with a wildly aromatic display: honeyed florals, cherries, crushed nectarines and exotic spices. It’s round and pliant, almost oily in texture, with ripe orchard fruits propelled by juicy acidity. This leaves a balanced inner sweetness while cleaning up well, with cascading inner florals that resonate.”
-Eric Guido, published by Vinous on May 2023, from A Kaleidoscope of Colors: New Rosé Releases. Suggested drinking: 2023-2024.
Vintage Notes
2020: A nice spring, not too rainy: just what was needed for the vine to blossom, followed by a very dry summer. September was particularly dry. But the wait for the rains at the end of September was very beneficial. The grapes picked up after this one and gained in richness and balance. In summary, it was a stressful year but one that knew how to wait for the rains: a great vintage. The Agenais 2020 offers a complex nose, evoking a basket of fresh fruits with floral notes. On the palate, the wine’s freshness enhances the aromas and their persistence.
2021: After a few stressful nights during the Spring checking temperature dreading the frost, season begins with sun alternative reasonable rain until the end of June. A little frost on June 21st damages some Rosé vines. Summer starts with humidity which could increase the sensibility of disease. Half July and a perfect summer weather, sun and little rains follow one another.
The harvest was quite fresh vintage due to the rains in the beginning of July.
Maturation takes time to be reached under the threat of the return of the rain.
It is with a little stress that harvest occurs. The vintage is promising, fruits notes come in first in the mouth then comes minerality.
IGP Agenais
Next in our series of IGP/IGT wines. Here we are in the Sud Ouest – where Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc grow wild and indigenous. (Cabernet Sauvignon is a 17th century hybrid of the two).
Indication Géographique Protégée means a delineated area which designates a particular terroir style (weirdly hard to translate this). In this case, Agenais is the IGP, overlapping with Buzet, Cotes du Marmandais and Cotes de Duras and is in the Lot et Garonne Department (47) which refers to the 2 rivers that flow through this stunning landscape, speckled with Gothic and Romanesque architecture. The ancient capital city Agen is 84 miles from Bordeaux. Soils here range from sandy riverbed to limestone hills in the north.
Christophe Avi who also makes our Buzet wine is a farmer with a passion for biodynamic viticulture. In his 40s, he runs his ancestor’s farm that borders AOC Buzet and AOC Cotes de Bruhlois. Since 1992, after a degree in oenology and viticulture, Christophe has honed his skills cultivating what is called ‘the blood of the Garonne.’
Size: 750ml
IGP: Agenais
Soil Type: Sand and Limestone
Varieties: 20% Cab Franc and 80% Cab Sauvignon
Age of Vines: 15-20 years
Farming: Sustainable: HVE 3
Alcohol: 12.9%
Barrel Details: Neutral
Exploitation en HVE (haute valeur environnementale).
