Terrasses du Larzac Autour de Jonquières 2023 Mas Jullien | Languedoc

Mas Jullien’s Terrasses du Larzac Autour de Jonquières is the flagship cuvée of Mas Jullien, a wine estate founded in 1985 by Olivier Jullien in Jonquières, north of Montpellier, alongside his right-hand man, Jean-Philippe Granier, and which remains one of the key artisans in the Languedoc’s renaissance in quality. The name pays homage to the winemaker’s hometown, where his ancestors are buried. The cuvée is a blend from several vineyards located around Jonquières and in neighboring towns, on limestone gravel soils perched between 150 and 250 meters above sea level, on the high terraces of the Hérault and the outer foothills of the Larzac. Made from old Mourvèdre, Carignan, and Syrah vines, cultivated according to organic and biodynamic principles, the grapes are fully destemmed and then vinified using gentle extraction methods, followed by a long period of ageing in demi-muids and then in large oak vats, a process that ensures it is suitable for aging for several years.

Philippe Mischler, sommelier at Mundovin: Terrasses du Larzac Autour de Jonquières from Mas Jullien is the wine estate’s flagship wine—one worth waiting for. Here, Olivier Jullien crafts a red wine marked by the garrigue and limestone, reserved in its youth, which fully reveals itself after several years in the cellar. It is a wine that requires patience, but one that richly rewards it.

On the nose, the garrigue dominates immediately, carried by mineral notes and a freshness that betrays the terroir’s limestone origins.

On the palate, the gentle extraction—almost like an infusion—delivers delicate yet distinct tannins, set against a dense and powerful structure.