Day 2 - Chateau du Donjon and La Cité de Carcassonne

We arrived this morning at Chateau du Donjon, a 150-acre estate that has been in the Panis-Mialhe family since the 1400s. The chateau was a former outpost for the monks, with an atmosphere that demonstrates the name donjon (derived from the same root as the English word, dungeon).

The winery is rich with history, including the old tanks build by Jean Panis' father, still there today. The medieval city of Carcassonne is made up of clay and limestone slopes and stony terraces. In the neighboring town, there is a popular butcher who sends his meat throughout all of France. We had the honor of eating his delicious, fresh sausage while tasting the Donjon wines.

Now southern France has been known to master in blood sausage, however it seems they are a master in most any sausage. The meat was curled into a spiral and then placed over a fire made from burning vines. Curiosity struck as to whether or not the vines played any role in the flavoring of the sausage, but either way, it was delicious - tucked between a fresh baguette or solo.

Donjon switched to sustainable agriculture about five years ago, and continues to run a very historic winery with modern technology. Jean produced his first vintage in 1996, making his trademark in wines rich in fruit.

We tasted nine of Donjon's wines, all some combination of the Carignan, Grenache, Syrah, Cinsaut, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petit Verdot grapes. Some highlights from the wines tasted were a 2009 Chateau du Donjon Minervois Rose; the 2008 Domaine la Galiniere Carignan; 2008 Domaine la Galiniere Cabernet Sauvignon; 2008 Chateau de Bagnoles Minervois; and the 2007 Le Merlot du Donjon.

The Rose seemed to be the favorite amongst the group today, with the plethora of sunshine and sausage to accompany. There was a pleasant floral and fruit nose and a strawberry palate.

After a wonderful lunch at Donjon we headed to the cité, or walled city. This medieval castle was finished in about 1300 A.D. and according to Kravitz, has been untouched since about 1400 A.D. Quite the tourist attraction for even French locals, this beautiful city has an outstandingly well-preserved castle, and quaint cobblestone streets and boutique shops.
*(If you ever make it here be sure to stop in to L'Art Gourmand Artisan Chocolatier!)

Although we did get a quick half-hour to check out the city, our focus was on tasting wines from Jeff Carrel. We tasted 15 of his wines, with many standing out such as the 2009 Clos du Cantons des Ormeaux Pomerol. This wine is 97% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc. It's a deep ruby in color, with fruit qualities, especially cherries and raspberries, which show up on the palate. There are good tannins, balanced acid, and a long, lingering finish.

The 2009 Puydeval was also very good, deep in color with a ripe dark fruit nose. There was a blackberry and dark berry rich palate.

The cité was located just about an hour from the hotel, which we headed back to for a tasting of some Domaines Malavieille and Pech de Lune wines, followed by another gourmet dinner. Again, the favorites seemed to be the Rose's: 2009 Cuvee Charmille Rose, 2009 Provence Rose, and 2009 Provence Rose 'Cuvee Amadeus.' We enjoyed these among others (many of which were produced from organically grown grapes) over a three-course meal at the hotel's restaurant.

The first-course was goat cheese toast, apple and fig compote, meurette sauce and mesclun salad. Second-course was a perfectly-cooked magret of duck with honey, crispy polenta and asparagus. Dessert was a strawberry soup with caramelized mango and menthe emulsion.

Full and tired - again! Tomorrow we have an early start to Saint-Cannat, so stay tuned to get all the juice.