Gerard Bertrand Orange Gold 2020 and An 806 AOP Corbieres 2017 Finesse in a

Gerard Bertrand's Orange Gold 2020 and An 806 AOP Corbieres 2017 labels — Gerard Bertrand’s Orange Gold 2020 and An 806 AOP Corbieres 2017 labels

I have two interesting finesse wines from Gerard Bertrand from the sunny south of France. Gerard Bertrand’s Orange Gold 2020 is an organic wine made with a blend of Chardonnay, Grenache Blanc, Viognier, Marsanne, Mauzac, Muscat, and Clairette with skin contact. The other wine is the Gerard Bertrand An 806 AOP Corbieres 2017 a Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre red blend. One thing that both wines undergo is carbonic maceration, which I find is quite interesting. You typically only hear about carbonic maceration for Beaujolais Nouveau wines which are meant to be fruity, easy-drinking wines; nothing too serious. But these two wines are an exception. Both wines are enjoyable to drink but they do have structure and complexity.

What is Carbonic Maceration?

Carbonic maceration is typically undertaken with light to medium-bodied wines to make them fruitier and to soften their tannins. The grapes are not crushed, rather put whole bunch into a fermentation vessel then carbon dioxide is added and the vessel sealed so no oxygen can interact with the grapes. There is no yeast to cause the grapes to ferment. The fermentation happens within the grape where the carbon dioxide is used to break down the sugars and malic acid within the grape. Once the alcohol level reaches 2%, the berries burst to release their juice and at this point fermentation using yeast is undertaken to convert the remaining sugars from the grape juice to produce the wine.

My Wine Tasting Notes

Gerard Bertrand Orange Gold 2020 (BC $26.99 on sale till Jan 1, 2022)

From the winery, “The hand-picked grapes are delicately carried to the winery where they are vatted without any destemming or crushing. A semi-carbonic maceration is made from 10 to 15 days with a light pumping over. To obtain a tannin/colour balance, the grapes are devatted, pressed and the wine is blended in a stainless steel tank to finish the fermentation. At the end of fermentation, the wine is put into barrels to complete its maceration.” The winery mentions the name “Orange Gold pays tribute to the power of the Sun and the beautiful sunsets of the South of France.”

Appearance: A deep, clear golden amber colour.
Nose: Medium-minus intensity nose with a mix of sweet spices, dried oranges, stone fruit, in particular, apricots, and then some honey aromas as the wine warms up. There are more honey and apricot aromas with decanting.
Palate: Dryish, round with a light mouthfeel. It provides a light acidic prickle on your tongue. A bit silky soft. Sweet orange and pear flavours primarily with a hint of sweet spices and honey toward the finish. The wine becomes rounder and more mouth-filling with decanting. The fruitiness is reduced a bit; less orange, but now you get apricot flavour, and a light toast component becomes detectable.
Finish: A medium plus length finishing with a hint of tannins from the grape skins. A light, dry finish. Light marmalade, orange and honey flavours. The wine becomes a bit tarter on the finish plus you can add apricot flavour.

The back label of the wine suggests serving this wine at 10 degrees C. I keep my wines at 14 degrees C and I found that as the wine warmed up in the glass the aromas and flavours became stronger. So I would say to not worry about getting this wine chilled down to 10 degrees C.

If you like to eat salami, this wine with its tannins works really well together.

Rating:

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A unique white wine that has skin contact. Deep golden amber colour. A dry, light, round, and soft mouthfeel. Light flavours of sweet oranges and pears, with a hint of sweet spices and honey. As the wine warms up you will also get apricots on the nose and palate.

Gerard Bertrand Orange Gold 2020 and An806 Corbieres 2017 with wines in glasses

Gerard Bertrand An 806 AOP Corbieres 2017 (BC $17.99 on sale till Jan 1, 2022)

From the winery, “All the grapes are handpicked. Carbonic maceration lasts from 10 to 18 days (Syrah) and a traditional maceration is carried out (with total destemming) for Grenache and Mourvèdre. After malolactic fermentation, the different grape varieties are blended and the wine is aged in 225 liter Bordeaux barrels for around 8 months. After a light fining and bottling, the wine is kept for several months before being released on the market.” The year 806 on the label represents the first traces of the Peyrepertuse Castle that overlooks their vineyard.

Appearance: Opaque garnet.

Nose: A medium intensity nose with meaty, nutmeg, and black fruit aromas. Hints of vanilla, oak, cocoa, floral and juicy berries with air. After decanting I get blackberries and other black fruits, nutmeg and black pepper, and juicy berries. No meatiness.
Palate: Dry, silky soft with a lighter mouthfeel. Light, fine-grained tannins. Black fruit, floral, plums and blackberry fruit flavours. You also get a touch of vanilla and juicy berries with air. Definitely, juicy berries after decanting plus the wine is more mouth-filling. Still soft and dry with floral, plums, sweet spices, and cocoa flavours.

Finish: A medium-plus length finishing dry, but not tannic. Black fruit and ripe black plums, plus a touch of sweet spice. You then get sweet black fruit at the very end. No change on the finish with decanting.

I tried this wine with an Italian cheese I purchased at BOSA Foods, Montegrappa Stagionato. It is an aged cow’s milk cheese from the Veneto region of Italy. It is very similar in texture to cheddar and has some crystals (salt?) within. It made a very nice complimentary pairing with this wine. I think this wine will be a crowd-pleaser at your holiday get-togethers.

Rating: 4 stars

An opaque garnet colour. Lighter bodied but dry and soft. Blackberries and other black fruits, plums, floral and some sweet spices. Medium-plus length finishing dry with light black fruit, plums and sweet spice flavours.