Introducing La Grange du Nord (Gard)
Following a fruitful visit to the south of France at the start of the year, we're now happy to introduce another new addition to our own range of imports - Frédéric Agneray of La Grange du Nord in the Gard.
For years a Parisian literature scholar and, perhaps unsurprisingly, procuring a secondary education in wine via the formative natural wine bars of the early 2000s, Fred eventually made his way south to make wine himself, via a series of stints learning on the job, establishing La Grange du Nord as 3 hectares in the Gard in 2014.
Sitting east, towards the Southern Rhône side of the Gard in Sabran, just west of Orange (and a short drive north from the iconic Tavel), the vines in many ways here enjoy an extension of the southern Ardèche terroir, with its limestone and clay soils and moderating mistral winds, whilst sitting at the intersection with the Languedoc and its balmy Mediterranean influence.
Plantings of Grenache prevail, along with Cinsault, Carignan, Syrah, Clairette and Roussanne as well as the local obscurity, Counoise, typically used as a blending grape in Châteauneuf-du-Pape – of course that brash, blockbuster style is not Fred’s thing at all, preferring to exercise a deft touch with these varietals, yielding elegant, perfumed wines that display a detail and nuance that doesn’t always go hand in hand with expectations of the region.
You can read a more detailed profile here and the following wines are all available now, to buy in our shop or direct to trade customers.