Journal

We have just landed our second shipment of from Frédéric & Delphine Agneray of La Grange du Nord in the Gard. The release spans 2021 to 2023 and sees some brand new wines alongside some welcome restocks.

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. As the domaine grew to incude a further 7 hectares, Fred was joined in his work by his sister Delphine and the pair now work side by side.

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.

For a domaine that predominantly grows Grenache, for this time of year we are happy to list our first ever macerated white from the Angerays, and some summer reds of the more lifted, luminous variety. Favouring delicate extraction and infusion over the bolder, heavier style, a deft touch with these varietals (also Cinsault, Carignan, Syrah, Clairette and Roussanne as well as the local obscurity, Counoise), yields elegant, perfumed wines that display a detail and nuance that doesn’t always go hand in hand with expectations of the region.

Find all the wines here.