Jancis Robinson: Western Languedoc travel, sustainably

Excerpt from the article published by: jancis robinson

While in the Minervois, make time for a meal at the Grand Café Occitan. This former village café has been transformed into a popular bistro by Robert Eden, owner and winemaker at nearby biodynamic estate Château Maris.

This is the place to taste Eden’s wines, as the estate does not have a tasting room, but the wine list also ranges further afield to include like-minded producers such as Ostertag in Alsace or Geneviève & Gilles Azam at Les Hautes Terres in Limoux.

Chef Tristram Bowden gets all his ingredients from farmers within an 80-km (50-mile) radius; meat comes from breeders in the Black Mountains, while fish and seafood are sourced from the Mediterranean.

Eden has farmed his vineyards biodynamically since the early 2000s and the estate is now certified by Ecocert (2002), Biodyvin (2004), Demeter (2008) and B Corp (2016, the first European vineyard to obtain this certification).

The wines (sales of which support local wildlife and biodiversity initiatives) are made in a carbon-negative, biodegradable cellar built from hemp bricks.

This unique construction can be visited as part of a tour that includes a short vineyard walk and a tasting of four wines (€12/person, reservations required). The subject of a ‘sustainability heroes’ entry in our 2020 wine writing competition, Eden’s project certainly deserves its place on any eco-aware wine tourist’s itinerary …

See the full article: https://www.jancisrobinson.com/articles/western-languedoc-travel-sustainably

Website of the Grand Occitan Café: https://www.grandcafeoccitan.com/

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