Michel Gassier

Michel Gassier is a family-owned business based in the Costières de Nîmes appellation of the southern Rhône Valley. It is most famous for its Château de Nages wines, made from the core family estate, but also makes a range of other wines under the Michel Gassier banner.

The latter wines come from around 100 hectares (250 acres) of additional vineyards. These include parcels bought by Cristina and Michel Gassier before they inherited Château de Nages, and a 50-hectare (125-acre) domaine at Bech in the south of the appellation, purchased in 2012.

Located between forest and the marshes of the Camargue, the bottom of this site has a very shallow loamy topsoil which allows the vines to access the chalky bedrock – which is said to bestow acidity and minerality to the finished wines -and some areas of yellow sand. At the top of the site there is a pebbly topsoil over iron-rich sandstone. These variations in the topsoil and deeper layers mean a wide selection of grape varieties are grown. Several areas which have been replanted at high density with Grenache (from cutings from old Châteauneuf plants) are still trained – like the older blocks – as bush vines, thus ruling out mechanized operations in the future.

The company also produces wines under the Lou Coucardié, Nostre Pais and Les Cépages de Michel Gassier lines. Wines under the Cercius label are made in co-operation with winemaking consultant Philippe Cambie and US importer Eric Solomon. Gassier also runs the négociant firm Halos de Jupiter with Cambie.