In 2013, Antonio Morescalchi, of Altos Las Hormigas in Argentina, and renowned soil-mapping expert Pedro Parra, visited Cahors to learn more about the origins of Malbec. The appellation's soil diversity fascinated the duo, especially in the vineyards planted on Kimmeridgian limestone terraces known as ‘causses’. “It took us five years to find limestone in Argentina, here, it took five minutes.” Pedro exclaims. As a result, they identified two remarkable vineyards to make wines from, ‘Terrasse’ and ‘En Pente’, founding Causse du Théron in the process. Today Antonio and Pedro work with talented winemakers Sebastien and Pierre Sigaud’s, whose father Jean-Marie drove the quality resurgence in Cahors and was early to recognise the potential of limestone-grown Malbec.
Planted on alluvial soil, the ‘Terrasse’ vineyard sits in a valley that is easily accessible, making it well placed to be harvested by machine. Once picked, the wine is fermented using indigenous yeasts in cement tanks and aged for a year before bottling. The final ‘Terrasse’ wine is incredibly pure, with expressive notes of ripe mulberry, blackberry and spice on the nose with fresh acidity and velvety tannins on the palate.
Conversely, the ‘En Pente’ vineyard is planted on steep Kimmeridgian limestone terraces which must be harvested by hand. Like ‘Terrasse’, ‘En Pente’ is fermented with indigenous yeasts in concrete tanks but is aged for two years rather than one. The result is a vibrant, yet intensely complex Malbec expression, with notes of blueberry and raspberry fruit, mouth-watering acidity and plump, round tannins.
The Causse du Théron wines may offer different expressions of Cahors Malbec, yet they share long, scented finishes and the ability to display bright Malbec fruit with a finesse unmarred by oak.
This wine is named after the En Pente vineyard. The 28 hectare vineyard is located on terraces of Kimmeridgian limestone. The fruit for this wine comes from a 2 hectare plot towards the higher, steeper part of the slope.
The 2021 vintage in Cahors was challenging with spring frosts reducing yields considerably. However, conditions during the summer were ideal and the fewer grapes underwent a perfectly paced slow ripening. Though quantities were down, quality was excellent and the grapes harvested had concentrated flavours and balancing natural acidity.
After being harvested by hand, the grapes from the En Pente vineyard underwent fermentation at 28 °C in cement tanks using ambient yeasts. The wine spent 20 days on its skins with careful pump overs to aid extraction. The wine was then aged in tank, rather than oak, for two years to add roundness and to ensure the bright Malbec fruit shines through the finished wine. The wine was lightly filtered prior to bottling. No fining took place.
The ‘En Pente’ has aromas of black cherry, redcurrant and spices with mouth-watering acidity and round tannins. This wine showcases the alluring, bright Malbec fruit with a long, scented finish that is unmarred by oak.
