Producer: La Sorga - Antony Tortul

Antony Tortul

Where?

A lot, that's the word. Rather than a geographical location, we are dealing here with a diffuse vineyard, scattered like a puzzle, as Audiard would have said. And for good reason: Antony Tortul, born in Foix (Ariège), is a winemaker constantly on the move who decided to take the best from a vast territory including Languedoc and part of Provence. With six years of experience as a viticultural technician and oenologist in various vineyards in the south of France (Bergerac, Fitou, Corbières, Ariège, and Châteauneuf-du-Pape), Antony founded La Sorga in 2008 with the goal of producing a wide range of natural wines. Having become a wine merchant, he travels the South and the Southwest in search of the best terroirs. Driven by enthusiasm, he follows a path filled with favorites, each of which is a vineyard. The result is a stunning mosaic of lively and spirited wines that reinvents itself each year, with around thirty cuvées per vintage. The plots he identifies and vinifies are located in Ariège, Gaillac, and Châteauneuf-du-Pape, for example, but this great cuvée creator seems to have a soft spot for Languedoc.

Terroir and Soils

For once, we must speak of terroirs in the plural, but across these numerous locations, Antony rigorously selects exceptional soils according to consistent criteria: hillside plots, well-drained, and based on a wide range of geological profiles. He prefers to select isolated vineyards to avoid contamination by chemical treatments. The epicenter of its production area is located in Aude and Hérault, with nine vineyards covering approximately 25 hectares. The soils and subsoils are highly varied: clay-limestone, schist, basalt, sandy, and granite. Vines selected from other regions only increase the diversity of La Sorga's soil profiles. Each year, Antony vinifies approximately forty plots.

Plots and Grape Varieties

The entire rich palette of southern grape varieties, from west to east, is displayed: Terret Blanc and Gris, Cinsault, Grenache, Aramon, Carignan, Aubun, Mauzac, Vermentino (Rolle), Ugni Blanc, Sauvignon, Mourvèdre, Muscat, etc. The vines range in age from forty to one hundred and ten years. Antony actively seeks out the local and traditional character of the varieties, who has a predilection for ancient grape varieties.

Growing Methods

The vines are cultivated organically or biodynamically, without any synthetic products, and are plowed or kept grassy to promote microbial life in the soil. Yields are low, and all vineyards, whether managed organically or biodynamically, are subject to strict cultivation specifications.

Harvesting is done by hand, at the correct ripeness, and is carefully sorted. The grapes are transported in small crates (maximum 15 kg) to guarantee their integrity until they reach the cellar.

Vinification

Antony vinifies simply and naturally, with as little intervention as possible. No oenological products are added at any stage of the vinification process. No sulfur either.

For the whites and rosés, the grapes are slowly pressed, without prior destemming; then the musts are settled, blended, and placed in barrels, where alcoholic fermentation takes place using indigenous yeasts. Malolactic fermentation and aging on lees also take place in barrels, after which the wines are bottled without fining and, most of the time, without filtration.

The reds are vinified without destemming in small open vats, using the principles of carbonic maceration for some vintages and with more extensive extraction for the majority of wines. Alcoholic fermentation takes place at low temperatures to preserve the fruit. Vatting periods are relatively short (from seven to twenty-one days). During pressing, which is slow and at low pressure, the last juices from the press are discarded. Malolactic fermentation and barrel aging last, depending on the case, between seven and thirty-six months.

The Wines

La Sorga's wines exude enthusiasm. Each vintage, these thirty or so cuvées are crafted with equal passion. Clear, defined, and charming, they are above all wines for pleasure, sunny, full of freshness, very drinkable without lacking complexity. Antony demonstrates a certain talent for bubbles, natural sparkling wines, true celebration wines offering explosive fruitiness. He also demonstrates great creativity in the naming and labeling of his wines. A few examples among many others: Belzébrut, a pet' nat' blanc de noirs aged eighteen months on slats; Fier Hérétique, a very rock'n'roll pet' nat' rosé; En Rouge et Noir, old black and white Grenache macerated for sixty days in whole bunches; or Aubunite, a stunning sparkling red made from the Aubun grape variety with a touch of Carignan.