Three new wines and a brand-new look for a few others. These guys produce some of the best value wines to come out of Southern France, and more specifically Languedoc, a region known for its white wines and medium bodied reds. Château Paul Mas consists of three Estates: The Castle- a 25-ha vineyard in Conas, near Pézenas, The Cellar- an 80-ha vineyard in Nicole, near Montagnac and 40 ha Vineyard in Caux.
Reserve White Blend 2019 – “an over achiever if I’ve ever seen one”
The Paul Mas Reserve White is a blend of Vermentino, Marsanne and Grenache Blanc and is not only new to the market but features the newly designed label and raised glass on the bottle. The aromatic nose has immediate appeal delivering delicate floral notes, white stone fruits and tropical fruits. The palate is silky smooth with a rich almost creamy texture wrapped around apple, peach and honeyed melon with subtle notes of banana skin and spices on a long finish. You can’t help but smile after swallowing your first sip. This is an enticing wine with wonderful balance and loads of appeal that draws the best out of the three blending grapes with impressive results, and a perfect wine to share with friends. Pair with seafood, crab or lobster or chicken dishes. I suspect this will cellar out to 2025 but it is drinking so well now I would drink it in the next year and hope the next vintage is as good as this.
Paul Mas Reserve Red Blend 2019 – “an absolute delight to drink”
The Reserve red is a blend of Grenache Noir, Syrah and Carignan and also features the newly designed label and bottle. Big jammy dark fruits on the nose with a promise of more to come. The plate is smooth and inviting with loads of cherries, dark raspberries, blackberries and a hint of vanilla and spices. Nice long finish. Improved with a few hours decanting. Great wine for grilling out or if you prefer, pair it with beef or veal. A delight to drink. Cellar out to 2027
Paul Mas Reserve Carignan 2018 – “great example of a 100% Carignan”
Originally from northeastern Spain, Carignan found its way into neighboring Languedoc and Cote du Rhone and is used as a blending grape and rarely shows itself in a single varietal form. They are rare but this is a wonderful example of how good this grape varietal can be on its own. This has all the typical traits with an enticing nose of dark fruits and spices to a bold balanced wine displaying layers of ripe blackberries, black current, raspberries, plums with secondary notes of licorice and spices. Tannins are evident but not obtrusive. I would recommend decanting this for few hours and would benefit from cellaring until 2027 and beyond. Pair with any hearty red meat dish.
Vine to Table 