Ormarine the leading producer of AOP Picpoul de Pinet, has launched a new wine, Excellence de l’Ormarine. Made from 100% piquepoul blanc that is matured on fine lees it is the first wine in the South of France to use this particular process. 

Sited next to the Etang de Thau in the south of France, Ormarine’s vineyards are kept cool at night after the day’s heat by the sea breezes coming in off this salt water lagoon next the Mediterranean.

This coolness keeps the grapes from ‘cooking’ and helps them keep a vivacious freshness, our sample bottle also had a marvellous subtle salinity from the salt that lands on the grape skins.

The Ormarine vineyards are cultivated using sustainable practices, and since 2018, the winery has been certified by Terra Vitis.  

Excellence de l’Ormarine comes from vines at least 15 years old. Once the grapes are pressed the lees are separated from the juice to be filtered and vinified separately.

Then they are reincorporated. The wine stays on its lees in classic concrete vats until the following spring, being regularly stirred to add aromatic complexity and richness to the palate.  

The result is a wine with all the familiar characteristics of Picpoul de Pinet, but more complex and with a bigger mouth feel.

You’ll find hits of acacia and hawthorn blossom, stone fruits and citrus notes and a long finish.

The salinity means it’s extra marvellous with oysters and other shellfish, while the lees ageing lets it partner well with soft cheeses like goats’ cheese or with a fish pie with a rich parsley sauce.  

Get your sealegs with Excellence de l’Ormarine 2021 , available at: Islington Wines – £12.99 (instore not online) and Strictly Wine £12.75