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Great Gold Medal 2007, Concours des Grands Vins du Languedoc-Roussillon; Gold Medal 2008, Competition of the Great Wines of France; Gold Medal 2007 Concours des Grands Vins du Languedoc-Roussillon; Silver Medal 2008 Chardonnay of the World; Silver Medal 2007, International Wine Challenge London; Bronze Medal 2008 National Competition of Wines made by Sustainable Viticulture , Bronze Medal 2007, Decanter World Wine Awards, Bronze Medal 2007, International Wine & Spirits Competition; 'Commended' 2007 Decanter World Wine Awards; Commended 2007 International Wine Challenge, London; Commended Mundus Vini 2007

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The Wines

AOC Blanquette de Limoux
AOC Limoux: Chardonnay; Chenin Blanc; Mauzac; La Trilogie
Dessert Wine
Vin de Pays

AOC BLANQUETTE DE LIMOUX

The world's first and original brut sparkling wine was discovered by happy accident - or by divine intervention - at a Benedictine monastery in Limoux in 1531, over a century before Dom Pérignon reputedly took the recipe up to Champagne. By the 19th century, Blanquette was enjoying worldwide popularity, from the White House in Washington to the palace of the Czars in St Petersburg. One of its biggest fans was Thomas Jefferson, third President of the United States, author of its Declaration of Independence, and certainly his country's greatest and most famous wine connoisseur. At the time of his death, about 10% of the legendary wine cellar at Monticello was filled with Blanquette de Limoux, the only sparkling wine kept there.

The world's oldest sparkler is still made to this very day only in Limoux, under the strictest AOC rules. Blanquette de Limoux is the oldest appellation in Languedoc-Roussillon, and one of the first in France. It has the lowest permitted maximum yield of any sparkling wine in the country, and is made exclusively from hand harvested grapes.

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AOC LIMOUX

AOC Limoux is the only white wine appellation in France requiring fermentation and maturation in oak barrels. It also decrees that the grapes must be picked by hand. The famous Roman historian Titus Livius was already extolling Limoux's 'wines of light' two thousand years ago. We are proud today to present the appellation's first-ever Trilogy of three wines made from the three permitted grape varieities: a chardonnay, a chenin blanc, and a mauzac - wines that reflect the full potential of the appellation, and glow with light as if the sunshine were still in them. A fourth wine, La Trilogie is an exclusive blend of the best barrels of the three grape varieties, and is the flagship of Chateau Rives-Blanques.

Cuvée de l'Odyssée (AOC Limoux)
Chardonnay

"Anyone can make a chardonnay anywhere in the world, but in Limoux, the terroirs give it a uniqueness you can find no where else." These are the words of the late René Renou, President of the French appellation institute (INAO). For our award-winning Cuvée de l'Odyssée, we use only hand-selected grapes from our top Chardonnay fields, arguably amongst the best in Limoux. The wine is fermented and maturated in French oak barrels, and bottled on the estate. Cuvée de l'Odyssée has been listed amongst the best wines of the year in France for the past five years in a row by La Revue du Vin de France, and was included in the dream wine list drawn up by three Best Sommelier in the World winners.

"Soft-edged, smooth, round ..."
Oz Clarke
"This chardonnay charms the senses"
1,000 Vins du Monde selected by Oenologues de France
"Takes you to the very heart of a vast olfactory universe"
Guide Hachette des Vins

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Cuvée Occitania (AOC Limoux)
Mauzac

This wine from uncloned vines celebrates Limoux's indigenous grape, dating back to the Renaissance. Mauzac is difficult to vinify as an interesting still wine for the same reasons that make it such a good base for sparkling wines: high acidity and a fairly neutral taste. By encouraging the mauzac on our lowest south-facing slopes to reach an unusually high level of maturity, we were able to produce this unique still wine, which has been included by La Revue du Vin de France in its roundup of the best wines of the millésime in France for the past four years in a row, and awarded four stars by Decnater Magazine. Cuvée Occitania is the only 100% barrel-vinified mauzac in the appellation - and perhaps even in the world.

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Dédicace (AOC Limoux)
Chenin Blanc

An exceptional wine that is truly the exception in a region not known for its chenin blanc. Dédicace has been made with great dedication from 20 year old vines: it is a "modern style of wine", made with care and experience rooted in tradition. Until recently the only chenin blanc with appellation status in the whole of the South of France, it has distinguished itself as one of the most interesting white wines from the region..

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La Trilogie (AOC Limoux)
Chardonnay - Chenin blanc - Mauzac

The harvest of 2006 marked the first time we were able to make a successful blend of the three grape varieties allowed by the Limoux appellation. Careful blending of our best barrels by Georges Pauli with Eric Vialade gave us the first hint of the elusive wine we have spent years trying to find: a wine that is elegant, complex, intellectually challenging and intelligent ... yet startlingly clear, clean and open. Only 1250 bottles were made.

"This magnificent ... superb wine gives honour to the Languedoc" Le Monde, Bettane & Desseauve

"A particularly interesting blend"
Steven Spurrier, Decanter Magazine.

Gold Medal, Competition of the Great Wines of France
Silver Medal International Wine Challenge

30% chenin blanc, 20% mauzac, 50% chardonnay
Yield between 35-45 hl/ha. Each grape variety vinified separately. Grapes picked and twice-sorted by hand, pressed within two hours of harvesting. Fermented and aged in French oak barrels for six months, with batonnage twice weekly. Blended by Georges Pauli and Eric Vialade.

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LATE HARVEST DESSERT WINE 2002 "JAN"

Extraordinary conditions of the 2002 harvest allowed our chenin blanc to become affected by pourriture noble, the 'noble' rot that causes the grapes to shrivel, wonderfully concentrating and intensifying their flavour. The grapes were individually selected and picked by hand on October 29, 2002; the wine fermented gently in one-year old barrels right through and into the next year, and then spent another year in the barrel ageing and balancing its natural sweetness against its natural acidity. Only 1764 individually numbered bottles of this wine have been made.

LATE HARVEST WINE 2004 "XAXA"

Chenin blanc

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CHARDONNAY DU DOMAINE
(Vin de Pays d'Oc)

Rightly dubbed as the 'Basic Beauty' of our stable, this is a clean, fresh and stylish chardonnay, vinified in stainless steel vats. We take as much pride in the quality of our Vin de Pays as we do in our flagship chardonnay, the Cuvée de l'Odyssée.

Château Rives-Blanques
11300 Cépie, Languedoc Roussillon, France
Tel-fax: +33 468 314320