Before settling down amid the vines, walls and soil of the Clos des Fées, Hervé Bizeul's peregrinations had been many, flitting around the wine business and the world in general. As a sommelier, as a journalist… but most of all, as a son of this hard ground, with a real pride in Roussillon. It was one day in the late 1990s, looking out onto this desert of scrubland, with its dry stone walls and vines planted in pick-hacked holes amid the green oaks with their twisted branches, that he decided to take his passion for wine to its logical extreme by becoming a wine grower himself. Thanks to his hard work in the vines – but also through his formidable enthusiasm for selling and promoting his wine with a talent for forging links that is somewhat uncommon among growers, who enjoy the solitary company of their vines and can be uneasy with commercial relationships – Bizeul would be quick to find success. And this success would enable him to live comfortably and develop his domain by expanding it through the purchase of parcels of land (both already planted and awaiting plantation), hiring workers, buying increasingly advanced equipment and continuing to tour the wine shows of France and the world, proudly flying the flag of his own wines as well as all the others in his region. But if you think Hervé Bizeul has retired his pen, then think again: today, he is among the most prolific contributors to be found in the blogosphere.

This cuvée from Clos des Fées is poetically labelled "Un faune avec son fifre sous les oliviers sauvages” (faun with fife under the wild olive trees). It is produced predominantly from massal-selection Cabernet Franc. The nose offers up aromas of ripe red fruits, red pepper and some delicate hints of spice, while the flavours of dark fruits and liquorice dominate on the deliciously powerful but balanced palate. This excellent wine pairs very well with Mediterranean style meat dishes.