Corbières: when flames threaten the vines and the people

After a growth phase that lasted all year, the vine has worked hard. As autumn begins, it enters dormancy: the leaves lose their green and turn brown, then fall; the canes brown in turn. The vine takes a little holiday — while the winemakers, for their part, are busy vinifying. Time for the wines to go into the cellar.

This summer, the magnificent landscapes of the Corbières, in the Aude, were hit head-on by fires of rare intensity. Hundreds of hectares of garrigue, pine forest and vines were reduced to ashes. The flames did not only destroy biodiversity: they also struck an activity that makes the region's heart beat — winegrowing.

The Corbières are one of the cradles of wine in Occitanie. Every plot is steeped in history — that of families settled there for generations, but also of promising young winemakers. The region stretches from the Alaric mountain, east of Carcassonne, to Port-Mahon, on the edge of the Bages lagoon and the Mediterranean.

In some villages, winemakers watched their plots blacken and their vines burn entirely. Others narrowly escaped catastrophe but had to harvest smoke-tainted grapes this year, often unusable for winemaking. For small family estates, these losses are a real ordeal: a sacrificed harvest, and sometimes several years before the vines can produce again.

The Corbières fires remind us how exposed vineyards are to climate change and natural hazards. Rising temperatures and drought make these territories particularly vulnerable. Preserving this winegrowing heritage is essential and demands collective effort: firebreaks, upkeep of the scrubland, and economic and moral support for the growers.

Today, the winemakers of the Corbières need solidarity. Buy their bottles, share their story: small gestures to help them get back on their feet. The flames may have blackened their vines, but they never touched their passion.

Why are we telling you all this? Because one of the commitments we made when creating L'Amicale du Raisin is to stand with the women and men at the root of our passion: the winemakers. So this month we are offering wines from the Corbières, from estates that were particularly affected.

If you plant the same grape in the east and in the west, do you get the same wine? Maybe, maybe not… to find out, you have to taste. That is what we invite you to discover: two colours, one "scientific" analysis — we taste, we compare, we debate (always kindly), and we discover what each approach says about the wine, its terroir and the people who make it. On 9 October from 7.30pm to 9.30pm, €45 for non-members and €35 for members.

For four generations the family has been making wine in Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse, in the heart of the Corbières. This year, 42 hectares were touched by flames or smoke and went unharvested. L'Ogre des Corbières 2022 (€22) is something of a phoenix rising from the ashes: a cuvée created especially in the wake of the summer fires, in AOP Corbières. Maximux 2023 (€13), AOP Corbières, generous red fruit with fine power. And Cuvée d'Émilie 2022 (€22), AOP Boutenac: a rich, long palate, perfect with meat in sauce.

A family estate at the foot of the Alaric mountain, organic since 2007 and biodynamic since 2012. Thirty hectares affected — a third of the estate. In white: NW le Rolle (€17), 100% Vermentino vinified in amphorae and ceramic jars, perfect with a sea bass ceviche; Les Grenaches Gris de Jean 2022 (€22), an orange wine vinified in amphora, the ideal match for a spicy dish; Les Chemins Blancs (€17), roundness and liveliness, wonderful with small goat's cheeses. In red: Les Chemins (€18), AOP Corbières, a blend of Carignan, Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah, perfect with a fine tomme de Savoie; Les Lanes (€13), an easy-drinking Grenache-Carignan; and La Pièce de Roche (€38), 100% Carignan, IGP Hauterive, a great cellaring wine that pairs wonderfully with duck.

And above all, let us not forget: drinking a bottle means saving a winemaker — this time more than ever.