Wines of France / Southwest / Roussillon / Côtes du Roussilon / Domaine des Schistes

Domaine des Schistes

​Domaine des Schistes is a family-owned estate in the Agly Valley of Roussillon, with vineyards around the villages of Estagel, Tautavel, and Maury. Although the family has farmed here for generations, Jacques and Nadine Sire began making and bottling their own wines in 1989, reviving the family cellar in the heart of the village, which dates back to 1906. Their son Mickaël joined the domaine in 2004, bringing experience gained in vineyards in France and abroad. Today, the estate farms around 50 hectares, primarily on the schist soils that give the domaine its name, as well as a smaller area of alluvial soils in the Agly Valley. Organic farming, traditional Mediterranean grape varieties, and careful attention to individual vineyard sites are central to their philosophy. In the cellar, plots are vinified separately with minimal intervention, with the aim of producing wines that capture the warmth and character of Roussillon while retaining freshness, balance, and a distinctive mineral quality.

Domaine des Schistes - Essencial Blanc Described as part of the “heart” of Domaine des Schistes, Essencial Blanc is an AOP Côtes du Roussillon produced from iron-rich schist soils near Estagel. The current blend brings together Vermentino, Grenache Gris, and Macabeu, traditional Mediterranean varieties that reflect the character of this warm, rocky landscape. The grapes are harvested by hand in the morning, gently pressed, and fermented in stainless steel, where the wine is also aged. The domaine avoids racking and adding sulfur during aging in order to preserve the purity and freshness of the fruit, while malolactic fermentation is blocked to retain acidity. The result is a fresh, expressive Roussillon white that combines the mineral character of its schist terroir with the personality and generosity of its Mediterranean grape varieties.

Domaine des Schistes - Essencial Rouge Essencial Rouge is an AOP Côtes du Roussillon Villages red from south-facing, schistous marl slopes around Tautavel, surrounded by the wild Mediterranean vegetation of the garrigue. A blend of traditional varieties including Lladoner Pelut, Carignan, Grenache Noir, and a small amount of Cinsault, it is made to emphasize vibrant fruit rather than extraction or oak. The destemmed grapes undergo a relatively short maceration of around ten days with gentle daily wetting of the cap, and the wine is subsequently aged in concrete tanks without racking or added sulfur until bottling. Intense red and dark fruit, particularly blackcurrant, is at the center of its character, accompanied by the volume, freshness, mineral notes, and garrigue-inspired spice that define the domaine’s Essencial wines. Generous yet lively, it is a distinctly Roussillon red designed for convivial drinking and pairs particularly well with braised lamb, veal, tagine, or grilled beef.

Domaine des Schistes’ Solera is a traditional AOP Rivesaltes Vin Doux Naturel made primarily from Grenache Gris, with a small proportion of Macabeu, grown on shallow brown schist soils in Tautavel. The vines are at least 40 years old and are harvested by hand at high ripeness before the must is fortified during fermentation. What makes this wine particularly distinctive is its long oxidative aging: it spends its first three years in concrete before moving into old wooden vats and finally demi-muids, none of which are topped up, encouraging gradual oxidation. The solera itself was begun with wine from 1985, and only 20 to 30 percent is drawn off for bottling at a time, with younger wine progressively replenishing the older wine below. This creates a remarkable continuity between vintages and gives the finished wine the depth, complexity, and mature oxidative character associated with traditional Rivesaltes. Served slightly chilled at 14–16°C, it is an excellent partner for crème catalane, blue cheese, or dark-chocolate orangettes.