URBAN GUIDE

This almost-2600-year-old winegrowing area was among the first to be granted AOC status, in 1936, along with Châteauneuf-du-Pape. In Cassis, white wines rule the roost.

This small but impressive appellation, covering just 215 hectares between the sea and the cliffs, boasts 12 estates producing 1 million bottle a year. «Since 2012 the whole of the Cassis vineyard area has been part of the Calanques national park, a unique situation for vineyards in France,» says Jonathan Sack, the appellation’s chairman. «This is a new stage in the vineyards’ protection and has prompted the growers to take a more sustainable approach.» The vintages are surprisingly uniform in quality, year after year. «Most of our wines are white, of course, but they’ve been making rather more rosés lately,» says Lionel Legoinha, sommelier at the 2-star Villa Madie restaurant.

White wine in its element
Talking about the appellation’s progress, Lionel Legoinha stresses the «sound and very pertinent» nature of the reds, each glass releasing punchy aromas of pepper, garrigue, tobacco and liquorice. Mourvèdre is grown on the slopes below Cap Canaille, Mont Gibal and the Couronne de Charlemagne, as well as in the neighbouring Bandol appellation. Mourvèdre is important because it allows a wine to age pleasantly. Cinsault, Grenache and Carignan help to make full-bodied wines that pair well with meat in sauce, or small game. Cassis is equally original in producing mostly white wines of a lovely pale yellow with bright glints. «There’s only one word for them: elegant,» says Legoinha, and calls to mind the quintessential example of a perfect pairing, with a dish that chef Dimitri Droisneau put on the menu a few months ago: an aubergine caviar, cuttlefish ink, riquette, coriander and pistou tartlet with sardine lightly marinated in lemon and salt. «The ozony side of Cassis white and its smoky and cedarwood notes seemed to me very interesting with that dish,» he says.

A well-preserved terroir
And then there are the rosés. Like all the Provence rosés, they give the impression of biting into a red fruit. And they accompany simple meals and grand dinners alike, from aperitif to dessert. Put the bottle in a fountain and fish it out a few hours later: it will be just the right temperature, perfect for a dish of Provençal stuffed vegetables, char-grilled lamb cutlets with Provençal herbs, lemony Lebanese tabbouleh or grilled red mullet. Cassis winegrowers have a deep respect for their land, so, logically enough, they favour organic farming methods to preserve all the richness and biodiversity of their environment. At present 70% of Cassis vineyards are run organically and the goal is to achieve 100%. That ambition highlights once again the unique character of these wines. «There are no black sheep in Cassis! It’s hard to name a single winery that makes the exception. There are no bad wines here, and each one has it particularity,» says Lionel Legoinha, who has been sommelier at Villa Madie since 2007.

Par Pierre Psaltis