Malbec

Its origin

A descendant of Prunelard and Magdeleine Noire des Charantes, it was adopted by the “town of the Cadurques” two thousand years ago, during the Roman conquests. Rechristened “The Black Wine of Cahors” by the English, it almost disappeared after the phylloxera disaster in 1876. It was reborn and its quality improved thanks to the dedication of devoted producers. The wine-growers who decided to bring it back to life were the founders of the Parnac cooperative cellar (1947).

Alias...

It has more than a hundred different names characteristic of the land and people who looked after it: Côt (Loire), Auxerrois (a distortion of Haute-Serre near Cahors), Malbec in Cahors (the alternative Malbeck was introduced in Gironde), (noir de) Pressac in the Libourne region, Vesparo, Plant du Lot in Dordogne, and Plant de Cahors or Plant du Roy.

Its preferred soil

This grape variety is the main one in the Cahors wine-growing region spread over 9 terroirs, consisting of terraces along the Lot, limestone slopes and limestone plateaux.

Its aromas

Malbec infuses highly aromatic wines able to express their black fruits with notes of plum, candied fruit, liquorice, vanilla, cinnamon, cocoa, truffle and a certain freshness. Its high concentration of anthocyanins and tannins gives it an elegant inky black colour and a rich, intense mouthfeel. Its enthralling history is testament to people's determination to carry on tradition.