DOMAINE LA TOUR VIEILLE

Spring 2011, planting Grenache vines overlooking the sea… Domaine la Tour Vieille regroups two familial estates of co-owners Vincent Cantié from Collioure and Christine Campadieu from Banyuls. Enlarged, remodeled and restructured since then, the domain’s dozen parcels are spread out between Collioure, where the old stone watchtower lends us its name, and Banyuls, where the vines surround the old white chapel called “La Salette”, high on the hillside overlooking the town. We wanted to respect the working conditions of our ancestors, who had patiently shaped these terraced vineyards stone by stone to create a unique architecture that we love. We were born here and grew up among these twisted vines of ever-changing beauty. One day they called us each back home from afar, one after the other... and today our lives are richer and happier for it. All our wines are only made with grapes from our own traditional vineyards in ancient Catalonia, 32 acres of steep slopes overlooking the Mediterranean Sea in southernmost France. Our land and vines are only worked by hand. The ancient architecture of rows of terraced vines separated by low dry-stone walls resists mechanization and requires the arduous manual labor which is the very soul and spirit of what we want to preserve.

___________________________________________________________ Domaine la Tour Vieille - 12 Route de Madeloc - 66190 Collioure Tel : +33 (0)468 82 44 82 - Fax : +33 (0)468 82 38 42 e-mail : [email protected] Website : www.latourvieille.com

WHITE, ROSÉ AND RED COLLIOURE WINES. Our vines are planted almost directly into the rocky layer -the schist- just below the soil, which barely covers them. Pruned in a goblet shape, the plant grow beautifully because at night the warm ground nourishes them with heat stored during the day. The maximum yield permitted by the COLLIOURE label is 40 hl per hectare.

_______________________________________________________________ _____ COLLIOURE BLANC A.O.C LES CANADELLS, Our land and vines produce beautiful yet powerful wines, as this one proves. Low-yield Grenache results here in a complex “wine of the sea”, displaying nice hints of dry and fragrant “garrigue” on the nose and a very well-balanced and extremely round character on the palate. 70% Grenache grey, and Grenache white, 10% Macabeu, 10% vermentino, 10% roussane grapes. The Grenache grey is immediatly pressed, whereas the white grapes undergo a short skin maceration. Some of this wine will then ferment in oak barrels with regular stirring of the lees. It goes nicely with rock fish, grilled squid, white meat in sauce or cheeses like Comté, Camembert or Reblochon. COLLIOURE ROSÉ A.O.C “Rosé des Roches” : Wine made by drawing off the juice from the vat early in maceration. It then undergoes temperature-controlled fermentation. Fruity yet structured, this is a rosé full of character which can be enjoyed with grilled or baked fish, poultry, white meats and squid risotto. Varietals : 50% Grenache black, 50% Syrah. COLLIOURE RED WINE A.O.C: We make two to three different kinds of COLLIOURE RED depending on the vintage, the specific harvest and our constant desire for exploring new tastes. These wines are named after the respective vineyards where their grapes grow. “La Pinède” is 75% Grenache black and 25% Mourvèdre and Carignan from vines at least 50 years old growing in a part of “La Tourette”. “Puig Oriol” is 70% Syrah and 30% black Grenache. “Puig Ambeille” is 80% Mourvèdre, 20% black Grenache. Rich and spicy, COLLIOURE RED WINE should be uncorked and aired before serving at 64°F (18°C) in accompaniment of meats and stews, duck, game and fish baked with garlic. Depending on the vintage, you can keep these wines 10-15 years. COLLIOURE and BANYULS A.O.C are official labels for wines produced in just four communes: Collioure, PortVendres, Banyuls-sur-Mer and Cerbère. Domaine La Tour Vieille produces no more than 20,000 bottles a year of COLLIOURE RED WINE.

BANYULS VINS DOUX NATURELS (SWEET WINES) Famous as dessert wines, these naturally sweet wines are also popular in France as aperitifs. Serve them cool before a meal, and enjoy the older wines for dessert. We offer two categories of Banyuls: “Millésimés” wines like RIMAGE and BANYULS BLANC are made from the grapes of a specific harvest and represent the specific character of the year. They are bottled early. “Non-Millésimés” like BANYULS RESERVA and VIN DE MÉDITATION are traditionally undated, as the specific characteristics of each harvest are artfully blended over time. They are aged through oxidative maturation for several years outdoors in glass jugs or oak barrels to achieve unique and rich flavors. Maximum yield is 30hl per hectare. ____________________________________________________________________ BANYULS “Blanc” (White) V.D.N. (vin doux naturel) : White and grey Grenache grapes are pressed directly upon arrival at the winery, then alcohol is added to the fermenting must to make a uniquely charming, smooth, sweet wine with refined flavors of fresh “garrigue” (wild southern hillside) and honey. We produce 4,000-6,000 bottles a year.

Serve slightly cooled to 63°F (17°C) accompanying “îles flottantes” (floating islands of baked whipped egg whites laid on egg-custard, topped with caramel), Catalan cream custard, frangipane pastry or frozen Nougat and vanilla ice cream. BANYULS “Rimage” V.D.N. : Bottled during its first year of maturation, this wine is intentionally protected from oxidation we seek in other wines. The result is a spicy explosion of blackberries, cherries and raspberries, which otherwise disappears in the aging process. Enjoy this wine young or keep it for for 10 years or more.

Made from selected Grenache grapes whose fermentation is stopped by the addition of alcohol. It goes well with red berry soup, fruit pies or cheesecakes served with cherry or blackberry marmalade.

BANYULS “Rimage Mise Tardive” (Late Bottled Rimage) : Same process as the Banyuls Rimage, except we bottle this one later, after 3 years of “affinage” in a large 2700 liters oak tun , being carefully kept away from oxidation. The result is a an even more spicy spirit with oriental hints. A very refined Banyuls, the perfect bottle to sip in good company.

Made from selected Grenache grapes whose fermentation is stopped by the addition of alcohol. It goes well with strong cheese or cheesecakes served with cherry or blackberry marmalade or just served by itself with a cup of dried fruit. BANYULS “Reserva” V.D.N. : Aged outside for several years in big glass jugs or 600L oak barrels before bottling, these wines evoke the BANYULS of yesterday, halfway between “fruity” and “smoky”. Famous for their perfect accompaniment of chocolate desserts.

A blend of black Grenache grapes with a hint of Carignan from old to very old vines. whose fermentation is stopped by the addition of alcohol, these wines are bottled after about six years of aging.

Incredible with a creamy, pungent French blue cheese like Fourme d’Ambert.

RARITIES Our foothills of unique Mediterranean schists enhance the flavor of the noble Grenache grape, so well-suited to drought and extreme climatic conditions like the powerful Tramontana wind and and heavy torrential rains, as well as arid soils. Grenache enables us to produce a full range of wines, in every color, both dry and sweet, the ultimate being our Rancio Sec“Dry Rancio” inherited from our Catalan know-how, a challenge to modern oenological technology. ____________________________________________________________________ MEMOIRE D’AUTOMNES, a dry white wine : After a long fermentation, this wine is left to itself for at least 4 years. Picked late and made of grey and white Grenaches, it is left to oxidation, as are some of the most curious and delicious wines in the world : vin jaune du Jura or dry sherry… No more than 2 or 3 barrels are made every year. Special wine for cheeses, Spanish “Serrano” ham or salted fish, cured anchovies. CAP DE CREUS, a dry rancio : A direct legacy of our ancestors, this wine is more like a statement of identity than a product of viticulture and winemaking. In the past none of the dry wines we know today were made. People would put aside some of the grapes designed for the sweet wines, with usually over 15% natural alcohol potential, and made this “dry” wine for their personal consumption. At long last the wines would complete their fermentation with almost the same high levels of alcohol, and the result would be this amusing –amazing ?- wine we are still making today. It is one of a kind. After several years of aging in old oak barrels, it acquires its distinctive rancio notes. Although it is often compared to Fino de Jeréz, our rancio has more rusticity to it. It deserves to survive the current harmonization of regulations on winemaking and viticulture. VIN DE MÉDITATION “Meditation Wine” - a solera Banyuls : The solera is an aging process borrowed from Andalusian winemaking whereby the older wine is entrusted with the younger’s one education. We “late bottled” this very old 1952 Banyuls for the first time in 1994, and we have been using it as a solera’s basic wine ever since. The result is an ageless wine (it averages 40 years or more) that has now achieved dazzling rancio flavors. Time has shaped this very fine and unique wine to be enjoyed at the end of a meal, straight or with a cigar and a moment or two ahead of you...