Clos Siguier Les Camille Vieilles Vignes Malbec 2020

Clos Siguier Les Camille Vieilles Vignes Cahors 2020 comes from a family estate with roots in the Quercy going back to 1779. The Bley family farms about 15 hectares on the limestone plateaus above Cahors, where the difficult, relatively poor soils naturally limit yields and produce more concentrated fruit. The estate has maintained a traditional approach to farming and winemaking while increasingly focusing on natural cellar practices and the character of its individual parcels.

Les Camille comes from the estate’s oldest malbec vines, planted in 1949 on a shallow clay limestone parcel rich in iron. The vines produce very low yields, around 25 hl/ha, and the fruit is harvested and vinified separately from the rest of the estate. This is a particularly good example of how Cahors can show depth and structure without relying on excessive ripeness or extraction.

The wine is 100 percent malbec. Fermentation is carried out with indigenous yeasts and a 15 to 20 day maceration, followed by aging first in cement and then in 600 liter foudre for six to ten months. Importantly, the wood is largely neutral, with the barrels averaging about five years old, so the oak is used for gentle development and tannin integration rather than flavor.

The 2020 shows the classic Cahors combination of dark fruit, earth, violet, and firm but polished tannin, with the old vines providing concentration while the limestone soils keep the wine fresh and focused.

A traditionally made Cahors with genuine old vine character, where malbec, limestone, and patient élevage do most of the work.