Domaine Du Mas Blanc Banyuls D’Atan 2006
Recalling his grandfather’s fondness for the old wines aged in chestnut barrels, third-generation winemaker Jean-Michel Parce commissioned two 500-liter barrels from a strand of chestnut trees on his cousin’s property in Roussillon. Chestnut is more porous than oak, it requires greater attention on the part of the winemaker, but when managed well it can impart structure married to a fat, exuberant, and oxidative expression.