Château de Rieux

Château de Rieux is a family estate created in 1870 in the Languedoc region next to the real Château de Rieux which has been built in the 10th century. The property has for long been orientated towards a negociant activity selling single grape variety wines. Located at the foot of the Montagne Noire, the most precious spot of the Minervois appellation, and taken over in 1998 by Emmanuel de Soos, the domaine is now focusing on blend wines from Minervois. The varieties grown are fairly typical for the region, with Grenache, Syrah, Pinot, Cinsault and Carignan for the reds; Viognier and Sauvignon for the whites. Over the years, Emmanuel decreased the size of the vineyard from 35 to 24 hectares in order to focus on quality. The vines are planted on clay and limestone soils and are farmed organically with the domaine being about to be certified. They are pruned in Cordon de Royat in order to limitate the number of bunches on each of them. Once again the idea being to focus on quality. The wines are vinified traditionally. 100% de-stemmed for the reds with soft extractions. Fermented with indigenous yeast most of the cuvées undergo a close to 8 months ageing in oak.