Domaine de l'Aigle

AOP Limoux - IGP Upper Aude Valley

Domaine de l'Aigle

The wines of the estate
Aigle Royal Chardonnay 2017
AOP Limoux
From 47.00 €
aigle royal pinot noir gérard bertrand red wine glass
Aigle Royal Pinot Noir 2015
IGP Haute Vallée de l'Aude
From 52.00 €
aigle royal pinot noir gérard bertrand red wine glass
Aigle Royal Pinot Noir 2016
IGP Haute Vallée de l'Aude
From 47.00 €
red-white-wine-eagle-domain-trunk
Box Domaine de l'Aigle
  34.00 €
domainee-de-l'aigle-chardonnay
Domaine de l'Aigle Chardonnay 2019
AOP Limoux
  15.50 €
eagle-eagle-gewurtzraminer
Domaine de l'Aigle Gewürztraminer 2017
IGP Pays d'Oc
  15.50 €
eagle-eagle-pinot-black domain
Domaine de l'Aigle Pinot Noir 2018
IGP Haute Vallée de l'Aude
  15.50 €

The Domaine de l'Aigle is located at the foot of the Roquetaillade cliff, where Bonelli's eagles nest, a protected species that gave its name to the estate. It occupies the top of the Limoux terroir, whose cool Pyrenean foothills climate made it possible to produce the first sparkling wines in France as early as 1531 at the Saint-Hilaire Abbey. Champenois and Burgundians have taken an interest in this part of the Languedoc where Chardonnay and Pinot Noir reach their perfect maturity without losing their freshness. The Domaine de l'Aigle was born out of this ambition to plant the grape varieties of the northern vineyards on this exceptionally cool terroir of the Languedoc to explore their quality potential. Gérard Bertrand acquired the estate's 40 hectares in 2007 with the aim of creating the best Pinots Noirs and Chardonnays. Since 2015 we have also been producing a top level Gewürztraminer. The estate is cultivated in biodynamic agriculture certified Demeter since the 2018 vintage.

History

The Domaine de l'Aigle is located at the foot of the Roquetaillade cliff, where Bonelli's eagles nest, a protected species that gave its name to the estate. It occupies the top of the Limoux terroir, whose cool Pyrenean foothills climate made it possible to produce the first sparkling wines in France as early as 1531 at the Saint-Hilaire Abbey. Champenois and Burgundians have taken an interest in this part of the Languedoc where Chardonnay and Pinot Noir reach their perfect maturity without losing their freshness. The Domaine de l'Aigle was born out of this ambition to plant the grape varieties of the northern vineyards on this exceptionally cool terroir of the Languedoc to explore their quality potential. Gérard Bertrand acquired the estate and its thirty-one hectares in 2007 with the desire to carry out a real quest for excellence. The grapes come from sustainable agriculture, in accordance with the Terra Vitis approach, which guarantees the traceability of cultivation practices verified by an independent body. 

Character & Nature

At the foot of the Pyrenees, the estate's vines reach a height of over 500 metres: it is one of the highest vineyards in the Upper Aude Valley and the whole of Languedoc. This situation accentuates the coolness of the climate, of oceanic type with a semi-continental tendency, unique in the region. Temperatures here are 2 to 3°C lower than those recorded on average in the Languedoc, while rainfall averages 900 mm per year (compared to 600 mm in Narbonne). The altitude also reinforces the thermal amplitude between summer days and nights, which allows a slow maturation of the grapes, preserves their acidity and guarantees the aromatic precision of the wines. The limestone cliff of Roquetaillade overlooks the estate. In the valley, the soil alternates clay-sand layers which form an ideal compromise in terms of water and nutrient retention for the vines. The higher plots bite into the cliff and its marine limestone component, which brings a salivating tactile dimension to the wines.

Vinification

In red as in white, the wines show an expression of their grape variety while respecting the fundamentals of the cool climate (acidity, aromatic profile, quality of the tannins) with an additional salivating touch on the palate and length on the finish which is due to the minerality of the terroir. In red, the Pinot Noir is de-stemmed, the maceration is particularly careful (cold pre-fermentation, then punching of the cap at the beginning of the alcoholic fermentation, followed by pumping over for a gentler extraction at the end of fermentation). After pressing, malolactic fermentation and maturing for 9 months take place in oak barrels. Finally, the wines from the different barrels are blended after racking. There is no filtration before bottling. The Pinot Noir de l'Aigle opens a basket of red and black cherries adorned with tasty notes of grilled meat. For the white, the Chardonnay is delicately pressed and then settled. The alcoholic fermentation is carried out in vats. The malolactic fermentation is 100%. The wine is aged on fine lees and part of it is put into oak barrels. It gains in roundness and greediness on the nose and the attack on the palate, while the heart of the mouth and the finish are marked by an intense, almost mentholated, very salty freshness.

Domaine de l'Aigle"Higher"


n.m. (Latin aquila, - ae), an altitude terroir where the freshness of the climate and the soil give wings to the wines.