WTN: South West grape Mansois (Fer)

Mansois, also known as Fer (servadou), is one of those South West French grapes I’ve tried in some big wine fair type of event. But if the area and the grape are new and you have no reference points ready in your head, such big fairs aren’t a good place to try something completely new since in the minute or so you have with a wine you will probably not get a very clear understanding of it. All I remember of that fair is that all the SW autochthonous grapes left a positive impression and I have since tried all that I have seen here. Today I finally saw, and hence tried, a wine from the red grape Mansois.

Lionel Osmin & Cie. Marcillac Mansois 2015 – c.16€; 12,5% abv
I was at first reminded of a warm year Loire Cab franc because of its dark fruit with currant aromas and its fresh lift. That likeness continued on the palate, too, since it is a relatively light and refreshing wine instead of something dense and supremely tannic. But though not terribly dense or extracted it does have more flesh to the fruit than most Cab franc I’ve tried. It’s like Cab franc’s slightly softer cousin. Fun wine, not too serious but still interesting. Buy again? Fer sure (dammit! almost made it through an entire post without a lame pun!).

Any wine from Marcillac is top drawer imo.

Any wine from Marcillac is top drawer imo.

You've obviously never been to the region.

Any wine from Marcillac is top drawer imo.

You've obviously never been to the region.

Bad peasant wine is still more...interesting...than bad Modesto Factory wine?

Any wine from Marcillac is top drawer imo.

You've obviously never been to the region.

Bad peasant wine is still more...interesting...than bad Modesto Factory wine?

Maybe. Certainly more digestible over lunch. But probably not top drawer in most people's estimation.

The wines from Marcillac that I have tasted from the Sampler in London have been very good.

The wines from Marcillac that I have tasted from the Sampler in London have been very good.

Of course. The handful of wines deemed worthy of export are often very good/top drawer.

But that's a far cry from the regional average. And I don't know how one would go about studying this/quantifying it, but from my limited experience, the average in Marcillac is towards the low end of things (even as these things go). Perhaps the rusticity of the grape contributes to that.

Perhaps the rusticity of the grape contributes to that.

I am just a working class guy from Indiana, the "Alabama of the Midwest". I LIKE rustic.

The wines from Marcillac that I have tasted from the Sampler in London have been very good.

Of course. The handful of wines deemed worthy of export are often very good/top drawer.

But that's a far cry from the regional average. And I don't know how one would go about studying this/quantifying it, but from my limited experience, the average in Marcillac is towards the low end of things (even as these things go). Perhaps the rusticity of the grape contributes to that.

I have had no experience of the regional average but the range of Domaine du Cos is very good as is Les Crestes from the regional co-operative. I am a fan. I will snap up Marcillac from other producers if I see them. I think that the "regional average" is of interest in very few regions. I concur with the spirit of Bob's original comment.