Obriers de La Pèira - Millésimes
Obriers de la Pèira 2015
AOC LARZAC
Obriers is La Pèira’s third (or entry level) wine. It is made from two traditionally disprised grape varieties of Southern France: Cinsault and Carignan. That was the case when we start bottling the Cuvee, now they’re almost highly fashionable. The two stalwart varieties were used to make vin ordinaire (ordinary wine) that was a daily drink for many in the region and in France. Our wish from the start was to do something extraordinary with the two cepages by farming well and harvesting by hand. The plots that make up this wine are from the Estate’s Belle Fiolle (Bellefeuille) and Les Points lieu-dits (see map).
2015 MILLÉSIME / VINTAGE
Early, hot vintage with dry growing conditions producing deep, rich, full-bodied wines with at the same time a purity of fruit and sound, tannic structure.
Wine Advocate 92
Tasted out of bottle, the 2015 Terrasses du Larzac Les Obriers is probably the finest vintage of this cuvee to date (the 2016 might give it a run for its money). Made from 45% Carignan, 30% Cinsault and the balance Syrah, it offers the classic savoriness and dried-earth characteristics I always find in this wine, as well as plenty of sweet fruit, medium to full-bodied richness, silky tannin and a great finish. Drink it anytime over the coming 4-5 years. Wine Advocate 92 Drink Date 2017 – 2022
Obriers de la Pèira 2014
AOC LARZAC
Obriers is La Pèira’s third (or entry level) wine. It is made from two traditionally disprised grape varieties of Southern France: Cinsault and Carignan. That was the case when we start bottling the Cuvee, now they’re almost highly fashionable. The two stalwart varieties were used to make vin ordinaire (ordinary wine) that was a daily drink for many in the region and in France. Our wish from the start was to do something extraordinary with the two cepages by farming well and harvesting by hand. The plots that make up this wine are from the Estate’s Belle Fiolle (Bellefeuille) and Les Points lieu-dits (see map).
2014 MILLÉSIME / VINTAGE
A dry year, where a coolish summer produced wines of concentration and quality. Fortunately, hail and rain, which touched much of the wider region, missed La Pèira (and the Terrasses du Larzac for the most part).
Wine Advocate 90/100
Tasted out of bottle, the 2014 Terrasses du Larzac Les Obriers offers lots of savory cherry and black berry fruit, dried herbs and a hint of flowers in a medium-bodied, lightly textured, perfumed and elegant style. It’s a beautiful wine to drink over the coming 4-5 years. Drink Date 2016 – 2021
Issue Date 28th Apr 2016 Source 224, The Wine Advocate
Robert Parker
La Pèira’s least expensive cuvée is a blend of 65% Cinsault and 35% Carignan aged in concrete tanks and neutral wood foudres. Yields were very low and the wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered. Gorgeous blueberry, blackberry, and raspberry notes jump from the glass of this elegant, pure, medium-bodied wine that has exceptional fragrance at this price point, excellent concentration and nice texture and overall equilibrium. This is a beauty that’s quite Burgundian in style and very pure. Drink it over the next 2-3 years. 90/100
Obriers de la Pèira 2013
AOC LARZAC
Obriers is La Pèira’s third (or entry level) wine. It is made from two traditionally disprised grape varieties of Southern France: Cinsault and Carignan. That was the case when we start bottling the Cuvee, now they’re almost highly fashionable. The two stalwart varieties were used to make vin ordinaire (ordinary wine) that was a daily drink for many in the region and in France. Our wish from the start was to do something extraordinary with the two cepages by farming well and harvesting by hand. The plots that make up this wine are from the Estate’s Belle Fiolle (Bellefeuille) and Les Points lieu-dits (see map).
2013 MILLÉSIME / VINTAGE
After cold, damp start to the year, an Indian summer led to a late harvest with Syrah and the late-ripening Carignan and Mourvèdre faring particularly well. A delicacy and youthful feeling of the finesse of the 2012 – but with more the frame and body of 2011.
Wine Advocate 90-92/100
Moving to their entry level, Cinsault-based release, the 2013 Coteaux du Languedoc Terrasses du Larzac Les Obriers (65% Cinsault and 35% Carignan aged half in oak tanks and half in 600-liter barrels) is perfumed and complex, with plenty of sweet kirsch, exotic pepper, spices and leather-styled aromas and flavors. Medium-bodied, lightly textured and elegant, with a seamless profile, it should easily be an outstanding example of this cuvee and drink nicely for 5-8 years.
Wine Advocate (La Peira Vertical Tasting 2016)
Leading off the 2013s, the 2013 Terrasses du Larzac Les Obriers is a fresh, elegant red that shows the cooler, later style of the vintage. Dried herbs, black currants, black cherries and licorice all give way to a lightly textured, balanced 2013 that’s ideal for drinking over the coming 3-4 years. 89/100
Obriers de la Pèira 2012
AOC LARZAC
Obriers is La Pèira’s third (or entry level) wine. It is made from two traditionally disprised grape varieties of Southern France: Cinsault and Carignan. That was the case when we start bottling the Cuvee, now they’re almost highly fashionable. The two stalwart varieties were used to make vin ordinaire (ordinary wine) that was a daily drink for many in the region and in France. Our wish from the start was to do something extraordinary with the two cepages by farming well and harvesting by hand. The plots that make up this wine are from the Estate’s Belle Fiolle (Bellefeuille) and Les Points lieu-dits (see map).
2012 MILLÉSIME / VINTAGE
An atypical vintage for La Peira. A cold spring, then cooler in general (if sometimes volatile) weather over the summer and leading up to harvest. The result is a 2012 vintage that is relatively lean bodied for the region, with a lively, fresh profile, accessible at an early age, with an earlier drinking window.
Wine Advocate 90/100
Already in bottle, the 2012 Coteaux du Languedoc Terrasses du Larzac Les Obriers offers fabulous Cinsault character and shows how interesting this variety can be when done right. Incredibly floral and perfumed, with sweet blackberry, violets, lilacs and exotic spices, this medium-bodied, elegant and silky effort builds on the palate, shows notable freshness and a pure, hard-to-resist feel. I’d drink it over the coming 4-5 years, but it will evolve for longer.
Obriers de la Pèira 2011
AOC LARZAC
Obriers is La Pèira’s third (or entry level) wine. It is made from two traditionally disprised grape varieties of Southern France: Cinsault and Carignan. That was the case when we start bottling the Cuvee, now they’re almost highly fashionable. The two stalwart varieties were used to make vin ordinaire (ordinary wine) that was a daily drink for many in the region and in France. Our wish from the start was to do something extraordinary with the two cepages by farming well and harvesting by hand. The plots that make up this wine are from the Estate’s Belle Fiolle (Bellefeuille) and Les Points lieu-dits (see map).
2011 MILLÉSIME / VINTAGE
A good deal of replenishment in the winter rain led to a warm spring and early growing season. A cooler summer and perfect August and September meant the 2011 vintage delivered ripe but approachable wines.
Wine Advocate 92/100
Bigger and richer, with more black fruits, ground pepper, forest floor and resinous scrub brush, the 2011 Coteaux du Languedoc Terrasses du Larzac Les Obriers (65% Cinsault, 35% Carignan) is medium-bodied, layered and textured on the palate, with a terrific finish. Drink it over the coming 4-6 years. The Wine Advocate 92/100
Obriers de la Pèira 2010
AOC LARZAC
Obriers is La Pèira’s third (or entry level) wine. It is made from two traditionally disprised grape varieties of Southern France: Cinsault and Carignan. That was the case when we start bottling the Cuvee, now they’re almost highly fashionable. The two stalwart varieties were used to make vin ordinaire (ordinary wine) that was a daily drink for many in the region and in France. Our wish from the start was to do something extraordinary with the two cepages by farming well and harvesting by hand. The plots that make up this wine are from the Estate’s Belle Fiolle (Bellefeuille) and Les Points lieu-dits (see map).
2010 MILLÉSIME / VINTAGE
2010 can be seen in some ways to mix qualities of the 2008 and 2009 vintage. Good spring rains, moderate early temperatures, lead to a growing season in the Terrasses du Larzac of warm days and fresh cool nights.
Wine Advocate 91
An intriguing blend of 65% Cinsault and 35% Carignan aged 18-24 months in wood foudres. This much Cinsault usually produces a light wine as well as magnificent roses, but this offering is surprisingly deep. The flowery component of this varietal, combined with deep raspberry and kirsch-like fruit, medium body and an elegant style give this wine a Burgundian sensuality and finesse. I do not believe this remarkable 2010 will age well given its varietal composition, but who really knows? Certainly it is brilliant now and should continue to drink well for 3-4 years. Don’t miss it, especially if you love flowers, raspberries and finesse. My colleague David Schildknecht has written about this estate, which many observers consider to be the most exciting estate in the Languedoc.
Obriers de la Pèira 2009
AOC LARZAC
Obriers is La Pèira’s third (or entry level) wine. It is made from two traditionally disprised grape varieties of Southern France: Cinsault and Carignan. That was the case when we start bottling the Cuvee, now they’re almost highly fashionable. The two stalwart varieties were used to make vin ordinaire (ordinary wine) that was a daily drink for many in the region and in France. Our wish from the start was to do something extraordinary with the two cepages by farming well and harvesting by hand. The plots that make up this wine are from the Estate’s Belle Fiolle (Bellefeuille) and Les Points lieu-dits (see map).
2009 MILLÉSIME / VINTAGE
If 2008 (and 2006) appear to be cooler or more continental vintages, 2009 (with 2007) can be said to be Mediterranean one. Warm, dry conditions (at times even hot) led to ripe, concentrated, and opulent wines.
Wine Advocate 91-92/100
Tasted as a pre-assemblage (although I also tasted the individual components), La Peira’s Cinsault-Carignan 2009 Les Obriers de la Peira is initially smoky and nutty in a slightly reduced way, needing aeration to reveal more diverse and alluring scents of hibiscus, mulberry, and kirsch. Dark berries and beet root mingle with black tea and brown spices on a richly-textured yet infectiously juicy palate. Alkaline and wet stone suggestions underline a lingering finish. Some of the fine inner-mouth florality exhibited by this wine’s 2008 rendition was approached in the largest lot of the 2009 – which remained in upright wooden fermentor – but submerged in the blend, hopefully to eventually reappear. Expect this to reward for at least 3-4 years. (From the upright fermentor in which most of it was aged, the 2010 base wine already smelled and tasted irresistible in April, but it was to be blended with several small barrels of concentrated, minerally old vines Carignan, not all of which were through malo – although most of the cellar had completed that transformation.)
Obriers de la Pèira 2008
AOC LARZAC
Obriers is La Pèira’s third (or entry level) wine. It is made from two traditionally disprised grape varieties of Southern France: Cinsault and Carignan. That was the case when we start bottling the Cuvee, now they’re almost highly fashionable. The two stalwart varieties were used to make vin ordinaire (ordinary wine) that was a daily drink for many in the region and in France. Our wish from the start was to do something extraordinary with the two cepages by farming well and harvesting by hand. The plots that make up this wine are from the Estate’s Belle Fiolle (Bellefeuille) and Les Points lieu-dits (see map).
2008 MILLÉSIME / VINTAGE
A cooler vintage, characterized by a long, even ripening period, led to the 2008 vintage producing approachable yet high-quality wines, with a lither, lively, fresh profile.
Wine Advocate 90/100
As is often the case with wines from Cinsault and Carignan, the 2008 Les Obriers de la Peira displays a smoky aromatic overtone and nut husk bitterness attributable to reduction. The alkaline, stony elements that underlie this rendition of Les Obriers only tend to underscore its initial reticence. Aeration, though, reveals impressive depth of juicy, primary black fruit with the nuttiness emerging in a long finish in the form of delightfully piquant walnut oil and chard, while a mouthwateringly saline aspect adds to the wine’s impressive arsenal of mineral matter. This rather “serious” instantiation of its cuvee will I suspect be worth following for at least half a dozen years. That Les Obriers is La Peira’s least expensive bottling must in large part be attributed to its reliance on two rather unfashionable grapes; but I am coming to believe that it is a mistake to suppose that this fine value cuvee will require drinking any sooner than do its more flamboyant, seductive, and expensive siblings. (The berry richness, nutty piquancy, and mineral complexity of the bottled 2007 on this occasion lived up to the highest expectations reflected in my issue 183 rating.)
Obriers de la Pèira 2007
AOC LARZAC
Obriers is La Pèira’s third (or entry level) wine. It is made from two traditionally disprised grape varieties of Southern France: Cinsault and Carignan. That was the case when we start bottling the Cuvee, now they’re almost highly fashionable. The two stalwart varieties were used to make vin ordinaire (ordinary wine) that was a daily drink for many in the region and in France. Our wish from the start was to do something extraordinary with the two cepages by farming well and harvesting by hand. The plots that make up this wine are from the Estate’s Belle Fiolle (Bellefeuille) and Les Points lieu-dits (see map).
2007 MILLÉSIME / VINTAGE
Early flowering, temperate summer, and a warm autumn led to lower yields in 2007, and rich ripe wines characterised too by a feeling of lift and balance.
Wine Advocate 91-92/100
In my fantasy world where the authorities require every Languedoc vigneron to protect some old Cinsault and Carignan vines, they should all be required as well to taste La Peira’s 2007 Les Obriers de la Peira, or any other vintage of this remarkable blend of two parts Cinsault and one of Carignan. Production has already “ramped up” to over one thousand cases, or a bit more than the combined production of the estate’s other three cuvees. That said, the yields permitted these old vines (to say nothing of those that inform the other bottlings at this estate) would stop most growers dead in their tracks. This could be called almonds (Cinsault) meet walnuts (Carignan) and the nutty, toasty, richness is enhanced by fermentation and aging in young oaken uprights (whence I tasted it, with a small component from barriques having been added). To be sure, dark cherry and blackberry abound here too, along with hints of mint. Silky smooth and seductively palate-coating, enormously ripe to the point of resembling a liqueur, yet with its alcohol hidden and with a bright, vivacious core of fresh fruit, this will be irresistible on release, but who knows how many years it might go on delivering pleasure?
Jancis Robinson
Deep crimson blend of two-thirds Cinsault with Carignan. Oaked.
Juicy Cinsault fruit dominates on the nose – very pretty. Lovely smooth texture. Great balance. The most definitively Languedoc of these wines. Just a hint of rusty nails on the finish but a very flattering sweet wine that you could lap up in its luscious primary fruit phase already. Hint of treacle on the finish but all red cherry fruit to begin with
Obriers de la Pèira 2006
AOC LARZAC
Obriers is La Pèira’s third (or entry level) wine. It is made from two traditionally disprised grape varieties of Southern France: Cinsault and Carignan. That was the case when we start bottling the Cuvee, now they’re almost highly fashionable. The two stalwart varieties were used to make vin ordinaire (ordinary wine) that was a daily drink for many in the region and in France. Our wish from the start was to do something extraordinary with the two cepages by farming well and harvesting by hand. The plots that make up this wine are from the Estate’s Belle Fiolle (Bellefeuille) and Les Points lieu-dits (see map).
2006 MILLÉSIME / VINTAGE
Dry Year with a warm June and summer in gerneral. August was cooler. Nuch needed September rain. Grapes achived a slow and steady phenolic maturity and a well-balanced excellent vintage with somewhat of a more cooler-climate profile.
Wine Advocate 93/100
Although this blend of 65% Cinsault and 35% Carignan is not from the Rhone Valley, since my colleague, David Schildknecht, has not had an opportunity to taste it, it’s included here. This estate aims to rival the great Negly for making the top wines in Languedoc, and this 2006 is their introductory offering. Falling somewhere between a great Cote Rotie and a top-notch Hermitage, it boasts a dense purple color along with a super-ripe nose of blackberries, cassis, charcoal, wood smoke, and spice. Beautifully textured, full-bodied, and opulent, it is a stunning example of what can be accomplished in this backwater appellation. Drink it over the next 5-7 years.
Jancis Robinson
Mid crimson with very fresh fruit and quite a bit of acidity and tannin. Much skinnier than the 2007. Alcohol shows a bit, not quite as seductive as the 2007. Lively, rich and spreads across the palate with minerals and a bit of coffee before the rusty nail. Integrity here. GV.
Obriers de la Pèira 2005
AOC LARZAC
Obriers is La Pèira’s third (or entry level) wine. It is made from two traditionally disprised grape varieties of Southern France: Cinsault and Carignan. That was the case when we start bottling the Cuvee, now they’re almost highly fashionable. The two stalwart varieties were used to make vin ordinaire (ordinary wine) that was a daily drink for many in the region and in France. Our wish from the start was to do something extraordinary with the two cepages by farming well and harvesting by hand. The plots that make up this wine are from the Estate’s Belle Fiolle (Bellefeuille) and Les Points lieu-dits (see map).
2005 MILLÉSIME / VINTAGE
After a wet spring, 2005 proved overall a dry and warm vintage. Some welcomed rain before harvest introduced an otherwise sunny period before harvest which favoured later ripening cepages such as Syrah. The first vintage; concentrated and ripe.
Wine Advocate 92/100
The 2005 Les Obriers de la Peira offers perfectly ripe, bright-edged cherry and blackberry with a rich dusting of cocoa powder and piquant walnut and pungent herbal accents. The blend here is the same as in subsequent vintages, but the hot, stressful ripening season seems to have slightly diminished the efficacy of the Cinsault, and brought-up the characteristics of Carignan in spades. This finishes with terrific tenacity and richness, as well as with peat, fruit pit, and sheer crushed stone suggestions that add depth and complexity. It tastes significantly better today than it did a year ago, and I wouldn’t doubt it will be worth following for at least several more years. Furthermore, at its price, it represents an amazing value which I cannot imagine any wine lover not wishing to buy as much of as he or she could and to follow in bottle. Too bad only 447 cases were bottled, but production more than doubled with the 2006.
