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31st Fête de Vins, Gaillac


Another day, another wine fair!

Better organised than the Cahors wine fair a couple of days ago, each of the estates represented had its own shack. Interesting to see, therefore, which ones were difficult to get to. I had an appointment to see Alain Rotier on Monday morning and thought I should introduce myself. Even on the quieter Saturday there was no chance of this as his stall was constantly packed with visitors – not surprising really given his reputation as the best producer in Gaillac (whilst writing this I am sipping on some of his 2006 “Renaissance” Doux which has 155 grams/litre residual sugar, a simply stunning wine.

Better organised for families too: a magic show in the afternoon and various games and rides for when they – and you – need a few minutes out of the fair.

The wines? A mixed bag: some really good fruity wines offering superb values and some tannic brutes (lots of Syrah for the top reds mixed in with the local Duras and Braucol grapes) some of which had potential, some of which didn’t. One estate had some bizarre wines but for me the stars were the Gaillac Doux wines and, apart from the Rotier offerings which I didn’t taste until the Monday, there were a couple of real stars which would vie with the best from Sauternes etc, albeit from the local Loin de l’Oeil grape which is a little different from Sémillon!

Another good day out!

By the way, Gaillac itself is a really good tourist destination with the Abbaye St Michel a stunning building (housing the tourist office and Maison des Vins) and just a short ride away are villages such as Cordes sur Ciel.

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