Irouleguy is a small wine region located 125 miles (200km) south of Bordeaux in Le Pays Basque – the French Basque Country. This is about as far south in France as it is possible to go before crossing the Pyrenees Mountains into the Pais Vasco of northern Spain. The region produces fruity, tannic red wines and full-bodied, tangy whites. Less well known and arguably under-rated are its intensely fruity and deeply colored rosés.
The official Irouleguy viticultural area covers 15 parishes in a landscape of rocky moorland and lush, green, rolling hills. At the heart of the area is the tiny village of Irouleguy (Irulegi in the Basque language), from which the appellation takes its name – a classic Basque village of white painted houses with red shutters and terracotta-tiled roofs.
© Ignacio Gavira
Irouleguy’s red wines are made from the Cabernet Franc and Tannat grape varieties, both of which have been grown here for centuries. Tannat is particularly emblematic of wines from south-western France, most famously Madiran. It was with Pascal Harriague, a 19th-century migrant from the Irouleguy area, that Tannat arrived in Uruguay, where it is now thriving. Cabernet Sauvignon, a more recent introduction to the Irouleguy vineyard, is also used, although only in relatively small quantities. These fruit-forward wines are so intensely tannic that most require four years or so before becoming approachable. The finest examples will improve in the bottle for ten years or so, all the while developing spicy, earthy notes and softening their tannic astringency.
White Irouleguy wines are made from Courbu, Petit Courbu, Gros Manseng and Petit Manseng, the classic white-wine blend of far south-western France and the same combination used in Irouleguy's sister appellations, Jurancon and Bearn. Here in this sunny, ocean-cooled corner of France, the grapes ripen fully and are able to retain more refreshing acidity than those grown in hotter inland areas. The result is a surprisingly full-bodied white wine with aromas of tropical fruits and just enough tangy acidity to remain balanced.
The local rosé, although not celebrated here as it is in the rest of southern France (particularly Provence), is produced in generous quantities, mostly for local consumption. Produced from the same varieties as the red, this is a fruit-driven, highly fragrant style of rosé whose deep color and fruit-forward aroma bear more than a passing resemblance to those of nearby Navarra. This makes it an excellent match for the spicy local cuisine, most obviously Piperrada – a ratatouille-like stew made with cured Jambon de Bayonne ham and spicy Piment d’Espelette peppers (both local products with their very own protected AOC appellation).
Situated roughly 25 miles (40km) south-east from the Atlantic coast at Bayonne, the Irouleguy viticultural area reaches right down to the Spanish border. This serves as a reminder of just how widespread winemaking is in France; almost precisely 600 miles due north-west of Irouleguy, the northernmost vineyards of Alsace trace France's border with Germany.
The geology in this south-western corner of France is complex, due mostly to its location immediately below the Pyrenees. The rock types are varied, but the hillside slopes (where most Irouleguy vineyards are located) are typically rich in sandstone and types of Jurassic limestone. On the lower slopes and in the valleys, red sandstone-rich clay is a significant factor in the soils, particularly around the villages of Saint-Jean Pied de Port and Saint-Etienne de Baigorry (baigorry is a contracted form of 'red river bank' in the Basque language).
The macroclimate, although clearly of maritime type, is heavily influenced by the presence of the mountains high above. Rounded hills and steep ridges rise up to 3300ft (1000m), sheltering the valleys below but also creating ‘Fohn’ winds. This creates a patchwork of mesoclimates as varied as the local geology; some sites are highly exposed, while others are well sheltered by the mountains above. The finest sites on lower, south-facing slopes enjoy protection from brisk northerly winds while bathing in bright sunshine throughout the growing season. Rainfall is moderate, averaging 1500mm a year and falling mostly in winter. Autumn is relatively warm and dry, making harvest much less stressful here than it is in cooler, wetter regions. The otherwise calm weather is, however, punctuated by unpredictable mountain storms and a hot, dry autumn wind known as the Haïze Hegoa.
Winemaking in this area dates back around two thousand years. It followed a pattern similar to that in many other parts of France – being introduced by the Romans and then actively developed by monks in the late Middle Ages. Here in the Basque Country, the first vineyards of any scale were those of the Roncesvalles abbey, where the monks made wine to supply pilgrims en route to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostella in Spanish Galicia, where tradition has it that the remains of the Apostle St. James are buried. Today, the Cave Irouleguy co-operative produces the majority of Irouleguy wine, complemented by a handful of independent domaines (most notably Brana, Arretxea and Illaria). The Irouleguy appellation was granted in 1970, after a revival in the local winemaking industry following decades of decline. The current level of vine plantings is about one-fifth of the figure that prevailed at the beginning of the 20th Century.
Although full of intrigue and promise, the Basque Country is far from France's most famous or prestigious wine region. It is perhaps better known for another specialty – its crisp, sharply acidic Basque-style cider.
