Rivesaltes Gardiés (Domaine) 1998

Since the 17th century, this property that was once called Mas Farine has opened several hectares of vines. Up until the middle of the 20th century, the production was sold to wine traders in Perpignan and Rivesaltes. Noëlle, the daughter of Justin Castany, took over the reins in the 1920s after she finished her viticultural education. After marrying Henri Gardiés, she renamed the estate Domaine Gardiés. They decided to focus more and more on vine production instead of auxiliary agriculture (such as olive trees). Jean Gardiés, their son, took over the running of the property in the 1960s, enlarging it until it was about 30 hectares in size (today, it amounts to 35 hectares).
His son Jean took over from him in the 1990s and in 2004, he decided to stop using all chemical treatments on the vines. The vineyards, which are cared for using organic methods, are planted on two high-quality terroirs (Vingrau and Espira d'Agly), which allows the wines to showcase the property’s style. The vineyards which have black schist and limestone soils are swept by the Mediterranean winds. The vines are on average 50 years old, and several different varieties cohabit the estate’s vineyards. All of this combines to create wines with remarkable power and unrivalled character.