Is Madiran off the radar for most wine drinkers because they are in the shadow of their Bordeaux neighbors?
Small streams make big rivers. With that in mind 20 producers from the appellation decided to join forces and founded Generation Madiran reports Fabrice on VinSurVin (French Wine Blog).
Madiran wines are mostly made with Tannat, a varietal adopted by winemakers in Argentina and Uruguay.
This red wine is robust with strong tannins. To balance Tannat some producers blend it with Cabernet Franc or Fer Servadou.
Fabrice sampled a few wines from Madiran.
It seems his favorite was Clos Basté, l’Esprit de Basté,
2006 (label above).
Maybe I will follow Fabrice lead, try to put my hands on a bottle of Madiran and share my impressions with you.
If I inspired you to visit the area and spend a day or two there, Le Prielle run by Simon and Paulette Appleby offers rural accommodations ('Gites') right in Madiran.
Generation Madiran is a French language site