One of Languedoc's most quietly subversive winemaking stories is that of Mas de Daumas Gassac, founded by the Guibert family who planted vines in a wild valley back in the 1970s and then helped rewrite the narrative around what southern French wine could be.

Following the the cemented reputation of Daumas Gassac and its offshoot Moulin de Gassac which offered more accessible bottlings, the family has now uncorked something different altogether. This year, the Guibert brothers are officially launching a brand new wine label: Atelier Guibert.

The project has been a decade in the making, slowly fermenting (if you will) in the background while the brothers-Samuel, Gaël, Roman, and Basile continued working the original estate. The first vinification took place in 2020 in the Daumas Gassac cellar. And in 2023, they completed their brand-new, dedicated winery tucked into the landscape of Aniane. The new winery sits in a basin, purposefully low-key-but what's happening inside is, by all accounts, a bit of a departure.

Atelier Guibert is described as a "Liberty and Creativity workshop", a space that, as the family puts it, exists to shake off tradition and lean into "natural, intuitive winemaking." There's an emphasis on letting the terroir speak for itself without too much winemaker intervention.

The estate sits on 14 hectares of vineyard land not far from Daumas Gassac, and it benefits from the same cooling winds and microclimates that have long given the Gassac wines their lift and freshness. Here, though, the focus is on southern French grape varieties-old-vine Cinsault, Mourvèdre, Carignan, Syrah, and Grenache-planted on soils ranging from rolled pebbles to sandy-clay parcels laced with active limestone. The approach is hands-off: low sulphites, whole-grape vinification, minimal manipulation, and a refusal to chase any particular formula.

The estate describes itself as a tribute to the spark that lit the fire behind Daumas Gassac in the first place; it's about preserving that original wild streak while allowing the fruit and the land to express themselves.

“Fruit of 50 years of experience, we proudly took our time to achieve the first steps leading to the birth of Atelier Guibert … Freed from rigid frameworks, Atelier Guibert explores, dares and strives to reveal the authenticity of the fruit and the energy of the place.”

– Atelier Guibert

This year, we shall get to taste what all that means in practice. The estate is debuting the first two cuvées of its label: Atelier Guibert Syrah 2020 and Atelier Guibert Génésis 2024.

The Syrah 2020 comes from an old vine of Syrah that has been subtly co-planted with Aramon and Alicante –heritage grapes rarely seen in the spotlight. Yields are kept low with production capped at 6,000 bottles. The plot is rich in rolled pebbles, which gives the fruit both ripeness and a lifted edge. The wine sees a mix of ageing vessels: a year in Stockinger wooden vats, Atelier Centre France barrels, and Vin et Terre amphorae, then another three years of bottle ageing.

On the other hand, Génésis 2024 is a blend: 46% Syrah, 34% very old Carignan, and 20% Cinsault, grown on sandy-clay soils. That touch of active limestone beneath the surface brings a brightness and tension to the wine. It's made with whole bunches, fermented with minimal intervention, aged 1.5 months in Stockinger vats, and kept on the lees with some gentle stirring. It's given a lower sulphite footprint too, which fans of natural wines might appreciate.

Both wines are slated for worldwide release. Atelier Guibert marks the official arrival of a new, more open-ended chapter in the Guibert family's journey!

Kanpai!

88 Bamboo Editorial Team