Green Wine Guide: “A clear lack of respect for these winegrowers who are working hard in Languedoc”, according to the Guibert brothers

The Guibert brothers (here with their mother Véronique) watch over the Daumas Gassac legacy. SYLVIE CAMBON

The sons of the late Aimé Guibert, at the Anian estate Daumas Gassac, have not digested the point of view expressed in Midi Libre by the editorial director of the Revue du vin de France, Denis Saverot, when the green guide to the best wines was released. They respond to him.

Samuel, the eldest Guibert (left) alongside his brother Roman.

The comments of the editorial director of the Revue du vin, Denis Saverot, in Midi Libre, made you jump. What are you disputing ?

Samuel Guibert: We are in a crucial period which is the grape harvest and the Guibert family was deeply shocked by these remarks, by the lack of respect for this Languedoc and all the work accomplished by the winegrowers of this region.

And a lack of respect particularly for your domain ?

Roman Guibert: I am quite surprised by the poverty of the analysis of our region and the poverty of his remarks in general, Denis Saverot being someone I appreciate moreover.

Summarizing a domain to its choice of grape varieties seems to me to lack vision in relation to terroir wines. If we talk about Daumas Gassac, we do not make a varietal wine. Our estate expresses a diversity of terroirs, including a unique one of glacial grèzes.

The definition of a great wine is first of all the expression of a terroir. The grape varieties are absolutely not what characterizes a great wine. On the contrary, it is the capacity of this or that grape variety to reveal the potential and excellence of the place where this wine comes from. When we talk about Burgundy wines, we do not reduce them to pinot noirs.

Your father defended, and you with him, the idea despite everything of grape varieties like cabernet that were not from Languedoc. You say yourselves that your wines are the antithesis of Languedoc wines…

Roman Guibert: I say that we have wines that are unique and that stand the test of time. That makes Daumas Gassac a unique wine. We don't depend on Cabernet Sauvignon. We just discovered 60 years ago that it was the best grape variety to express the terroir of the Gassac Valley. When Denis Saverot says that we are no longer in tune with the times, a great wine is precisely not subject to fashion. He makes no concessions. Bordeaux wines are not currently in tune with the times. On that score, we should take away their stars.

The logic that I thought I read between the lines is that we should produce infused wines. I have the impression that we are reproducing the story of Parker who advised at one time to only use wood. Here, we are doing the same thing, we are giving a direction and we are saying “We, the specialists in our offices, are going to explain to you what the idea of ​​wine is today and what wine lovers want”. 

Gaël Guibert: Many films have had great success but beforehand they had been destroyed by critics and so-called specialists, then praised by those who came to the theaters. At Daumas Gassac, we prefer to be praised by the 10,000 people who come to our cellars every year, from all four corners of the world, than to satisfy people who don't come to see us.

You also say that it's a form of contempt for Languedoc wines, which would never be good enough ?

Samuel Guibert: I meet people who marvel at Languedoc. There is a clear lack of respect for these winemakers who work hard, who explore their terroir. This surely comes from a lack of knowledge. I don't think Mr. Saverot and his team want to harm Languedoc, I hope so. Otherwise, we fall into a preference, we please our advertisers who come to the trade fairs.

Roman Guibert: We want to broaden the debate. We are in a region where we have had a form of modesty, apologizing before having done anything. I am happy to be from this region which offers wines that most people can still drink. Let's be proud! We must stand up, chest out, and just say adios to those who do not see the beauty and magic of our region.

You also had a hard time with the passage about your father ?

Gaël Guibert: What should we say to a man who insults the dead to get cheap publicity for himself ? What need did Denis Saverot have to insult our late father Aimé Guibert by calling him a roué (a cunning and unscrupulous person, according to the dictionary) ? Does he still hold it against him after 30 years and for what reason ? For this Mondavi project that was not carried out… of clearing 200 hectares of Hérault forest ? For this film Mondovino which denounced the incestuous relationships between wine critic and wealthy advertiser ?

To continue to open the field of debate, in which directions should Languedoc go with global warming which endangers vineyards ?

Samuel Guibert: The good thing about Languedoc is that it doesn't sit on a weight of tradition. We are constantly moving forward, searching for excellence. We are aware of the climatic complexities that lie ahead of us. This is something that has been underway for ten or fifteen years. We are involved in trials by INRA, by different faculties that take samples from us and our neighbours, on different grape varieties, we look at issues of heat, the moon.

Roman Guibert: The geography of our region has an obvious singularity, it is fragmented, with hills, scrubland, rivers. It is a very large vineyard but so fragmented that it is a poetry that can be discovered if you take the time to walk the paths. Due to this diversity of landscapes, we have as many answers as geographical locations. We were talking about the diversity of grape varieties: we must not stay on the answers of fifty or a hundred years ago, because reality has changed, the climate will not allow us to work in the same way.

The three brothers speak on behalf of the entire family (there are five of them) and their mother Véronique. I subscribe to read the rest