Toques et Clochers Limoux Chardonnay Haute Vallee 2024

Toques et Clochers Limoux Chardonnay

The elevage of Toques et Clochers Limoux Chardonnay is in new oak, which confers complex flavours of melted butter, nuts, caramel and toast.

There is also a delicious lemony twist in the finish. Yet another wine where the accent is on terroir and minimal intervention. Ages wonderfully too.

We call the Toques et Clochers Limoux Chardonnay our... petit Meursault!

Watch out for the punt on this bottle, deep enough for a small Sommelier to disappear into.

The Toques et Clochers refers to an auction of exceptional barrels from the best parcelles on the Sunday before Easter every year.

A gala dinner is cooked by a celebrity chef (hence the Toque – the chef‘s traditional tall white hat) whilst the proceeds of the auction go to a different Limoux wine village each year – to be used for the restoration of its bell tower (the Clocher).

Toques et Clochers Limoux Chardonnay is produced by Sieur d’Arques, situated 25 km from Carcassonne.

One of the leading wine organizations in the Languedoc region, Aimery Sieur d’Arques combines the latest wine producing technology with a healthy respect for tradition.

Considered a pioneer in Languedoc Roussillon in terms of quality of production and wine-growing techniques, La Cave des Vignerons du Sieur d’Arques was one of the first wineries in the eighties to develop plot-based selection in its 2800 hectares of AOC vineyard.

Their terroir which benefits from the Mediterranean sun, tempered by their proximity to the Pyrénées and the influence of the Atlantic Ocean, combines the ideal conditions for producing great wines, like the Toques et Clochers Limoux Chardonnay.

Limoux is a relatively new appellation (created in 2003), for red and white wines from the area around the town of Limoux, in the Pyrenean foothills of Southern France.

Historically this area has been better known for its sparkling wines, which are produced and sold under the Blanquette de Limoux and Cremant de Limoux appellation titles, but it's still wines are growing in reputation.

Jancis Robinson MW Recognition

This is not a new discovery for us, but it is a very welcome moment of recognition. Sieur d’Arques Toques & Clochers Haute Vallée Chardonnay has been part of the Hay Wines portfolio for over 10 years, during which time it has become one of our best-selling white wines and a long-standing buyer’s favourite.

In a recent blind tasting of top Chardonnays from around the world, Jancis Robinson MW awarded this wine 17.5/20 and named Hay Wines as UK stockist. For us, this perfectly captures why we have championed this Limoux Chardonnay for so long: it offers genuine class, freshness and complexity, with a level of quality that continues to outperform its price.

A serious Chardonnay from one of southern France’s most exciting cool-climate regions, and one we are proud to have supported for many years.

sieurdarques.com

Toques et Clochers Limoux Chardonnay