Every year, it's a surprise! Culture, climate, vinification... the quality of a vintage depends on all these factors. For the Château Pech-Latt team, this is what gives this profession its unique and exciting character. For the 2021 vintage, several hazards have made the task more complex, but the result is up to par and the quality of our AOC Corbières wines at the rendezvous.
2021: a year full of hazards
The year 2021 has been complicated in many ways. Between the spring frost then the summer drought, the weather gave us additional difficulties to overcome.
As our manager Marc-Simon reports, 60% of the plots were frozen in April, then we had no rain for more than two months: the grapes and the vine have suffered a lot until the end of August! Nevertheless, a lot of manual weeding work with a pickaxe and specific daily care made it possible to save the harvest until the harvest and to control as much as possible. the impact of these hazards on the profile of the wines of this 2021 vintage.
Harvest Report 2021
The frost had the effect of creating differences in maturity on the same plot or even on the same bunch. The choice of the harvest date for an organoleptically optimal harvest was therefore complicated.
The 2021 harvest in a few figures is:
- 18 days of harvest,
- 322,000 kg of grapes harvested
- 40 pickers
- i.e. 8,050 kg/pickers
- 5 cuvées
The harvest in 2021 took place in all weathers: very hot to start, then 100 mm of water from the 2nd week! This water allowed the grapes to swell and finish ripening in certain areas but did not facilitate the harvest.
The first grape varieties, Syrah and Grenache, revealed some nice surprises.
Unfortunately, an attack by a “Cryptobables” butterfly/caterpillar and 4 days of sea entry seriously damaged the other grapes.
It is under these more difficult conditions that manual harvesting finds all its interest. Indeed, the seriousness of our team of pickers has allowed us to meticulously sort the harvested bunches and ensure our 5 main cuvées: Grand Vin du Château, Terres Mûres, Mémoire d'Alaric, Maquis des Corbes, Ile Ardente.
Despite an estimated loss of 30% due to frost and 20% due to the surprising attack of this new butterfly – with which we will have to come to terms in the future – we have maintained our yield and put in the cellar a wine which will ensure good tastings in to come.
A very promising 2021 vintage
This harvest 2021 is the first of the new team of Château Pech-Latt
Despite a year marked by climatic and environmental hazards, the quality is there!
If this vintage 2021 has a lower degree than in previous years, the more delicate work in the cellar will bring out all the quality elements of the grapes to have a wine on the fruit, with balanced tannins with a pleasant acidity.
Beautiful tastings in perspective!
Our wines are aged in the cellar for several months; it will therefore be necessary to wait a little longer to taste them. In the meantime, discover our AOC Corbières wines, available for sale on previous vintages.