Badet Clément launches ‘Burgundian’ Pays d’Oc range

French négociant and producer Badet Clément is launching a new Burgundy-style premium organic range of wines from its recently acquired Domaine de la Métairie d’Alon in the Aude.

Domaine de la Métairie d’Alon (Photo: Claude Cruells)

The Languedoc domaine is one of the two property purchases Badet Clément made in 2015 as it sought to begin growing its own grapes for the first time in its 20-year history.

Domaine de la Métairie d’Alon is a 25-hectare estate planted with organically grown Pinot Noir and Chardonnay vines. It is located in a mountainous area around the village of Magrie, between Limoux and Roquetaillade, in the Languedoc’s Haute Vallée de l’Aude.

The estate is composed of exceptional terroirs, the highest in the Languedoc, devoted exclusively to the production of high-end Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wines. The grapes are grown on calcareous clay soil similar to that in Burgundy.

The purchase of this domaine was the result of a long search by fifth-generation Burgundian winemaker and Badet Clément founder Laurent Delaunay and his wife, Catherine. During their search the pair met Jean-Louis Denois, a pioneer of Pinot Noir in Limoux, who wanted to sell his vineyards to winemakers who were passionate about Burgundian varieties.

The wines in the new Domaine de la Métairie d’Alon range have been made using a Burgundian approach inspired by Laurent Delaunay’s Burgundian origins and fall into two quality levels:

Badet Clément’s Solaire single vineyard Pinot Noir

The ‘Le Village’ wines – a Pinot Noir, Pinot Noir rosé and Chardonnay all in the Pays d’Oc IGP category, made from blends from various parcels around the village of Magrie.

The ‘Cuvées Parcellaires’, or Single Vineyard wines – Chardonnay and Pinot Noir made from the best parcels, reflecting Burgundian premier or grand cru.

Laurent Delaunay is convinced of the potential of his Limoux terroir to produce excellent results with Burgundian varieties and intent on raising the profile of the Languedoc as a premium wine region.

“Outside of my native Burgundy, I firmly believe – and I’m not the only one – that these terroirs in our new vineyards in Limoux are capable of producing the best expression of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay outside of Burgundy,” he said.

“It has taken many years of research to find the right vineyards, and now that I have, I intend to dedicate myself to showing the wine world just what can be achieved here, and I hope that in doing so it will continue to raise awareness of the Languedoc as one of the best and most exciting wine regions in the world.’