Tête de Cuvée La Dépêche

In the heart of the Minervois,

on the heights of La Livinière, lies an

estate whose reputation reaches far

beyond the borders of Occitanie:

Maris. Nestled among garrigue,

dry-stone walls, and wind-swept

valleys, this property embodies a

different way of making wine:

patient, committed, and profoundly

respectful of natural balance.

Discovering Maris also means

meeting its winemaker, Robert Eden.

British by origin and passionate about

ecology long before the word became

commonplace, he arrived in the

Minervois in the 1990s and imme-

diately understood the magic of this

La Livinière terroir, the first

recognized cru of the Languedoc

in 1999. It is in this unique environment that one of the estate’s

emblematic cuvées was born: Les Planels. Crafted from old Syrah vines

planted on schist slopes, this cuvée is, year after year, the deepest

expression of the La Livinière terroir. In the cellar, Robert Eden favors

a gentle winemaking approach: delicate extractions, widely spaced

punch-downs, and long but never overdone macerations.

The ageing, carried out in barrels of several wines, preserves the

natural balance of the fruit. Les Planels 2021 reveals a deep, almost

black color.The nose opens with notes of wild blackberry, black pepper,

and violet, then evolves toward bay leaf and cocoa. On the palate,

the attack is generous, the tannins silky, and the finish remarkably long.

A powerful wine, yet never heavy—intense, but always elegant.