Fitou

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Terroir

• The appellation area consists of two separate entities divided by a limestone plateau and situated some fifteen kilometres apart, one coastal and the other at the foot of Mont Tauch.
• The western zone groups four communes located at higher elevation, at the foot of Mont Tauch, which reaches 917 metres.
• The maritime façade is dominated by the peninsula of the Leucate plateau, a promontory 50 metres above sea level visible from the sea.
• The soils of the coastal zone are clay-limestone, derived from the weathering of limestones, while those of the mountain zone develop over schist, limestone, or sandstone.
• The Mediterranean climate varies across sectors: the coastline is windy for around 200 days a year with north-westerly winds and receives 600 millimetres of rainfall, compared with 700 millimetres in the cooler hinterland.
• The Tramontane blows frequently across the terroir, on roughly one day in four, bringing a degree of freshness during the summer months. (via Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0)

• The Greeks settled at Leucate some 2,700 years ago and established vineyards on the coastline, close to the ports.
• The Cistercian monks of the Abbaye de Fontfroide, founded at the end of the twelfth century, played a major role in the development of local viticulture.
• The Fitou appellation d'origine contrôlée was recognised by decree on 28 April 1948, following an initial application lodged in 1935 that was interrupted by the Second World War.

• The wines are rich in tannins, powerful and full-bodied, with aromas of red fruits and spices such as pepper.
• With age, these aromas evolve towards notes of black fruits, truffle, toast, and sometimes leather or game, and the wines can be enjoyed young or age magnificently.

• Carignan and Grenache find favourable conditions for their expression in the warm, dry, low-yielding soils, with Carignan contributing power tempered by the generosity and roundness of Grenache.
• Between the clay-limestone soils of the coastal zone and the more demanding soils of the mountain zone, a gradient of suitability emerges that favours Syrah, which develops finesse and complexity around notes of violet and small fruits, and Mourvèdre along the coastal fringe, whose tannic structure lends the wines significant ageing potential.

Facts drawn from the specification's terroir-link section by automatic interpretation — see the source.

All appellations in France

Sources

• Product specification (BO Agri, PDF) — approved 10 avril 2019, JORF 2 mai 2019
• Official INAO text (show_texte)
• INAO product entry
• Official trade body site — CIVL