Château Viranel, Saint-Chinian Intuition Rouge 2018

Saint-Chinian doesn't get the press it deserves, but Château Viranel is exactly the kind of producer that makes you wonder why. Intuition Rouge is made from old vines, some nudging 90 years of age, grown on south-facing limestone terraces in the Languedoc's schist-and-limestone heartland. That combination of ancient roots and poor, well-drained soils gives the wine a focus and energy you don't always find at this price point: vivid blackcurrant and griotte cherry, a lift of violet, and a streak of liquorice that keeps things interesting. The tannins are ripe and present without being a chore. The 2018 vintage delivered warm, generous conditions across the south of France, and this wine wears that ripeness with confidence rather than excess. The family farm as close to organically as the realities of the vineyard allow, using no chemical fertilisers and reaching for treatments only when the harvest genuinely depends on it, which most years means not at all.