La Pèira 2020
Here in 2024, spring has replenished the water table, with dark rain clouds persisting as late spring flowers emerge at the feet of the dramatic mountains that ascend inland toward the Massif Central. The renewed water supply is welcomed.
Spring also brought the usual flurry of activity to the vineyards, with one notable difference this year in the Bois de Pauliau.
This year the ploughing there was accomplished by a team of draft horses rather than the ubiquitous tractor.
This decision was perhaps inspired by the low yields and meagre volumes of the 2021 vintage, which were so scarce that we decided to bottle the vintage in the pre-industrial fashion.
This is achieved by hand with an old device: the Chèvre à Deux Becs. The idea: to experiment in working this vineyard in a pre-industrial fashion.
Meanwhile, preparations were underway for the release of the 2020 vintage.
La Pèira 2020
“This ranks with the finest Languedoc ever,” Jeb Dunnuck writes of the La Pèira 2020.
Las Flors de la Pèira 2020
Of the estate’s second wine, Las Flors, Jancis Robinson writes, “a really satisfying, clever blend with herbal top notes and lots of depth and intrigue. If this is the 2ème (second wine), I look forward very much to tasting La Pèira itself!”
2020 Vintage – Excelsior: La Pèira 2020 and Las Flors de la Pèira 2020
“The 2020 La Peira is absolutely brilliant and one of the finest wines in this report,” writes Jeb Dunnuck of the La Pèira 2020.
The 2020 vintage could be described as equable:
• Autumn rains and mild December balanced with the warmest February for almost 20 years, since 2001, in the Hérault, resulting in an early budburst.
• Warm conditions in April and May allowing successful flowering, yet heavy rains in May.
• Cool and stormy weather in early June then hot, dry summer, yet without extreme heatwaves allowing the grapes to mature without much stress.
The vintage produced wines with a round, expansive mouthfeel, ripe, seamless tannins, and lovely purity of fruit including cassis and black raspberry. Classic Syrah characteristics—spice, ground pepper, game, and bacon fat—define the wines, which are deep, dense wit exceptional length.
Simon Field, Master of Wine, once remarked that the wines of La Pèira “boast an ethereal elegance that seems to be the Domaine’s calling-card, this in spite of an inherent richness of flavour.”
The 2020 reds are no exception.
The Whites
The whites, are generally released a year ahead than the reds. Yet there is no release of the La Pèira Blanc 2021, due to the severe frost that year which left many of the estate’s vineyards unable to produce.
The devastating April frosts and low yields necessitated early co-fermentation of many plots and white cepages.
For that reason alone, only Deusyls, the estate’s second white, was produced, with the La Pèira 2021, in effect, declassified.
This excellent Deusyls bottling is released alongside the La Pèira blanc 2022.
Notes can be found in the attached PDF.
2022 Vintage – A Leonine Vintage: La Pèira Blanc 2022
2022 proceeded with ease in a stately manner, prepared for in advance as winter and spring rains replenished water tables that vines could access during the summer months, and attended by the occasional burst of showers where needed. This allowed for a languorous and untroubled growing season, bathed in warm, sunny conditions.
The result?
Our note for the La Pèira Blanc 2022.
Tasting note:
Light pale gold. Aromas of white flowers and lemon zest. Presents volume and a rich, medium to full-bodied texture (‘vin gras’). A balancing freshness, reminiscent of biting into fresh fruit, complemented by a subtle sweetness and creamy mouthfeel.
2021 Vintage – ‘Bare ruin’d choirs, where late the sweet birds sang’: Deusyls de La Pèira 2021
The defining moment of the vintage came on 8th April 2021, when a devastating frost struck La Pèira.
The frost arrived just after Easter, as the young buds had emerged, and by morning, entire vineyards were stripped of their buds. Some vineyards were half-stripped, but the result was clear: almost all of that year’s crop was lost.
Despite the devastation, vineyard work continued as normal—there was no other choice. Yet, much of the vineyard remained barren, with only a few grapes to be found.
Due to this, plots and cépages were co-fermented, leading effectively to the declassification of the La Pèira Blanc into the Deusyls, which is exceptional.
Against these odds and this background, with the after tasting, what we found was a wine radiant with grace and gentleness.
Our note for the Deusyls de La Pèira 2021
Tasting note:
Straw, honey, light gold hue, with fresh citrus notes, ripe exotic tropical fruits and smoky toasted brioche. The palate is round and long with an almost honeycomb texture. Sweetness with bite and a good balance of freshness and richness.
