Clos des Fées 'La Petite Sibérie' - 2006

Hervé Bizeul, former sommelier, restauranteur and wine writer, was tired with his hectic Parisian life, and he had the determination to become a winemaker.

Following his instinct, he settled in 1997 in the village of Vingrau, north of Perpignan in the Côtes du Roussillon. He acquired a couple of plots of vines in the village, and began to make his own wine with the help of a friend.

The ball rolled quickly from there with the purchase of his house, the offer of unwanted old-vines parcels at a knock-down price, and before he knew it, Bizeul was faced with producing the 1998 vintage. He started in the back of a cellar provided by a friend.

‘I had no practical experience of winemaking – only what I'd learned as a journalist – but friends helped. 1998 turned out to be a great year.’

Now, Hervé Bizeul’s vineyard covers 30 hectares, planted with Syrah, Grenache, Carignan, Mourvèdre, Lladoner Pelut, Syrah, Grenache Blanc, Grenache Gris - sprinkled over more than 100 tiny little plots, many of which are magnificent, mature vineyards, planted on cooler slopes at the foot of the blue Vingrau hills. In addition to the vineyards, a 40-hectare olive grove provides olives, along with extra virgin olive oil.

Bizeul’s respect for the biodiversity has led him to purchase rugged land (100 hectares) around his vineyards, in order to create a complete ecosystem, so crucial for the balanced life of the vines.

A scrupulous man, Hervé nurtures his vineyards. There is a very large team of workers, who are extremely dedicated. The tending of the vines is precious, however, not forceful. No chemicals are allowed, and ploughing is regularly performed.

Grapes are hand-picked, with utmost attention to detail, and yields are minuscule, even microscopic in some instances. However, the fruits are impeccably ripe, and have retained their superb freshness along with their much needed acidity. The vinification takes place in the newly-built state-of-the-art cellar. Hervé’s approach is gentle, yet rigorous, with the precision of a Swiss watch-maker, and the very minimum of sulphur is added to the wines. 

Clos des Fées is very isolated, very wild, very romantic. Hervé Bizeul was inspired to christen the estate with this fanciful name, as he felt that the fairies would live there, in this mysterious place, if they existed.

Continuously questioning himself, Bizeul finds new ideas and new paths that will lead him to create new cuvées. Without a shadow of a doubt, the wines of the ‘fairies’ are unique, polished, structured, immaculate, with a lovely freshness. Bravo to Hervé Bizeul.