Domaine Ancienne Cure Jour de Fruit Monbazillac

Domaine Ancienne Cure Jour de Fruit Monbazillac is a wonderfully rich sweet wine made from low yields of late-harvested, botrytised, Semillon (90%) and Muscadelle (10%).

Domaine Ancienne Cure Jour de Fruit Monbazillac has flavours of marzipan, orange peel and spices.
Christian Roche has emerged in the last five years as one of the best growers in this appellation.

Domaine de l’Ancienne Cure is a family-run vineyard situated in Colombier, several kilometres from Bergerac.

L’Ancienne Cure was the once the presbytery of Colombier which boasts a thirteenth-century church. The old presbytery was bought by Hélène and Gaston Roche in 1946.
In 1984, their son Christian Roche inherited part of the family property and built its own winery to become an independent winemaker. Since 2009, the 42 hectare estate has been converting to organic viticulture.

Monbazillac has a long history (known as early as the 14th century) and is one of the world's great sweet wines.

The vineyard on Monbazillac hill is positioned on limestone interbedded with molassic sands and marl and the special micro-climate of its position on the north-facing slopes is particularly conducive to those autumnal mists which harbour the microscopic fungoid growth called botrytis cinerea.

The AOC of Monbazillac was first established in 1936, but the area has a long history of sweet wine production. Only wine made from grapes grown in Monbazillac that are affected by the "noble rot" (Botrytis cinerea) can be sold under the Monbazillac designation.

The grape varieties Sémillon, Sauvignon blanc and Muscadelle are used for Monbazillac, and the permitted base yield is 40 hectoliter per hectare, although actual yields are lower for many producers.

Monbazillac wines are broadly similar to Sauternes, but a difference is that Monbazillac often has a significantly higher proportion of Muscadelle in the blend, which can lead to slightly different aromas.

While Monbazillac in former times could be a simpler semi-sweet wine, the style in more recent years has been that of a fully botrytized wine, since from 1993 no mechanical harvesting is allowed, and harvesting in several tries is required.

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