Tasting the Liqueur Wines of the Roussillon | EUROtoday
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Rivesaltes is by far the biggest appellation for pure candy winemaking wines from Grenache blanc, Grenache gris, Grenache noir and Macabeu grapes; or as white Muscat de Rivesaltes, Grapes may be harvested from virtually the entire Pyrénées-MAGES DOP Orientales’s vineyards, in addition to the small appellation of Fitou, within the south of the neighboring Aude division…
Rivesaltes may be crimson, white or rosé, with deeply-colored early-bottled reds labeled as ‘grenot’, much like ruby port. Later-bottled, extra oxidic types of crimson and white are referred to as ‘tuile’ and ‘ambre’, respectively; these wines are matured in massive oak barrels for a minimum of three years, creating advanced nutty, dried fruit flavors, in a mode akin to tawny or colheita port.
In the steep brown schist hills overlooking Collioure, Roussillon’s emblematic fishing port, the Grenache noir grape makes Banyuls, France’s best pure candy wine. The best Banyuls Grand Cru wines are aged in oak for a minimum of 30 months and are solely made in the most effective vintages. Banyuls ‘rimage’ wines are macerated
on their grape skins for weeks after the fortifying spirit is added, after which corked early, like classic port, to develop gracefully in bottle.