HISTORY AND WINE from
Domaine de la Senche
Domaine de la Senche is a small, family-owned boutique vineyard in the heart of the village La Livinière, in Languedoc in the south of France. At Domaine de la Senche, the focus is on producing small quantities of high-quality, organic wine.
Small, organic wine production with focus on quality
Domaine de la Senche believes in that “good wine is made in the vineyard.” They pride themselves on the diversity of their different land parcels, which add to the wonderful complexity of the wines they produce. Domaine de la Senche focuses on organic farming with minimal treatment of the vines, and only use methods approved for organic farming. Soil preparation is performed regularly to avoid the use of herbicides, and organic fertilisers are used rather than chemicals. Green harvesting is performed to limit yield and increase the quality of the grapes. When the grapes reach an optimum ripeness and sugar level, harvesting is done by hand and the grapes are sorted before further processing. Fermentation is done in temperature controlled stainless-steel tanks, as well as in oak barrels.
From the 3,6 hectares of vines, which are on average 20 years old, Domaine de la Senche produces some 11,000 bottles og wine per year. The grape varieties Syrah, Grenache, and Carignan make up the vineyard’s exquisite red wines.
Domaine de la Senche also produces high-quality, organic extra virgin olive oil from their 200 olive trees.
Cuvée SOMI 2017 from Domaine de la Senche
Dark ruby color with purple reflections. On the nose, elegant aromas of ripe, dark, fruit (prune, cherry) as well as liquorice and spices. The notes of dark fruit, spice and liquorice on the palate give a complex, full-bodied wine with a silky texture and well-integrated ripe tannins. The finish is warm, long and elegant.
Awards:
Le Guide Hachette 2020 - 2 stars (meaning "remarkable" wine)
Wine from Domaine de la Senche
A sunny, beautiful and historical region with a fascinating history
Domaine de la Senche is situated in the hills just north of the main road running between Toulouse and Montpellier. The hilltop town of Carcassonne, with its famous medieval citadel, La Cité, is only 30 minutes away, while the town of Narbonne, situated on the Canal de la Robine and known as the first Roman establishment in France, is just 40 minutes away.
The village La Livinière has been known for its wine production since Roman times. In fact, the original name Lavineira means “a place planted with vines.” The vines are situated predominantly on a limestone plateau with some clay and silt, at an altitude of 80 to 300 meters, and scattered in the garrigue (low-growing, fragrant Mediterranean vegetation) and woods. The Black Mountains shelter this hillside region, trapping both heat and sun during day and providing much cooler temperatures in the evening and during night. The resulting substantial temperature change adds to the quality of the grapes.
La Livinière is part of the Minervois appellation. Due to the exceptional terroir, in 1999 certain land parcels in La Livinière obtained a separate appellation status as Cru La Livinière. The Cru La Livinière appellation has stricter regulations on yields, varieties of grapes, maturation levels as well as required approvals by an official tasting panel. Cuvée SOMI, Domaine de la Senche’s award winning red wine based on grapes from this exceptional terroir, has received Cru La Livinière status.
Events at Domaine de la Senche
Domaine de la Senche is owned and operated by a Norwegian family. The owners hold a WSET Diploma in wine and offer wine tastings as well as guided tours in the vineyard and of the winemaking process.
Privat group lunches by the vineyard or in the wine cellar can also be arranged by contacting the vineyard directly.