Discovering Cahors: 40 wines tasted and rated

Long before Argentina was producing wine, Malbec grapes were being used to produce strong, structured, intensely fruited wines from their original home of Cahors in south-west France.

Located in Occitania, halfway between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea – with influences from both, Cahors is a region of varying altitudes in the foothills of the Massif Central.

Scroll down for the top 20 Cahors wines

Just over two hours’ drive east of Bordeaux, the area is defined by two distinct landscapes and the presence of the Lot River.

One is a limestone plateau situated 250-350m above sea level and the other features low-lying terraces in the valley comprising alluvial deposits and closer to the River Lot which was for centuries used as means of transporting barrels to Bordeaux.

Due to the diversity of vineyard soils, which range in fertility and are affected varyingly by the weather, the styles of Cahors wines can also differ from light and fruity to full-bodied and deeply concentrated.

Cahors is France’s largest producer of Malbec grapes with 4,000ha under vine.

History

By the 13th century Cahors was one of the biggest and most important cities in France and its wines were already famous.

Bottles were said to have been served at the marriage of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry Plantagenet in 1152 and it had found fans in the forms of Kings, Russian Czars and Popes, specifically John XXII himself a native of Cahors.

The region produced at least six times more wine than it does today and exported it across the globe.

The wines were noted for their colour, described in the 19th century as ‘the black wines of Cahors’ and full-bodied, concentrated style.

See all 40 Cahors wine tasting notes and scores

A series of natural catastrophes – pests and frost, which wiped out the cultivation of vines in the region in the 19th century and again in 1956 respectively, as well as wars and market changes meant Cahors lost favour on the world wine stage and entered a period of neglect.

Subsequent plantings however formed the foundation for the success of Cahors wines to come.

Today

In 1971, Cahors was officially designated as an Appellation d’origine contrôlée (AOC). Producers are only allowed to use the labelling term for their red wines, which must be made with a minimum of 70% Malbec.

White and rosés are sold as ‘Vin de Pays du Lot’.

In the 80s and 90s the region benefited from considerable inward investment, as well as new clonal and graft material, and saw producers focus less on volume production and more and more on quality, especially given the success of Malbec in Argentina.

This led to an improvement in viticultural practices including hand-harvesting as well as softer extractions, longer maturations and better-quality French oak.

Emphasis on terroir has also led to a shift in quality with scientific approaches taken to understand different soils and choosing the optimum time to harvest.

Vineyards planted at higher altitudes are considered better able to produce fresher wines with more aromatics and higher acidities.

While many wines are made using 100% Malbec, also known locally as Auxerrois or Côt, it is sometimes blended with a proportion of Merlot for juiciness and plumpness and/or Tannat to add structure and tannin.

Cahors Malbecs tend to have more structure and firmer tannins than their Argentinian counterparts. They have an identifiable inky dark colour and strong aromatics, peppery and dry whereas South American versions are on the whole lighter, vibrant and fruit-forward with a succulent, velvet-soft texture.

At a glance

Total area: 21,700 ha

Total area under vine: 4,500 ha

Annual production: 20 million bottles

Organic farming: 17% (versus less than 10% on average in France)

Production: 80% winemakers, 20% co-operatives

Market: 70% domestic consumption

The tasting

The wines in the tasting demonstrated the range of flavours that can be found in Cahors ranging from sweet, confected and jammy to savoury and meaty to softer, more refined and fresh.

A spectrum of fruits can also be tasted comprising strawberries, raspberries and red cherries to dark plums, damsons blackcurrants and blackberries and, with a bit of age, tobacco, white spice, leather and dark chocolate.

Very few were austere or particularly astringent something they can be. Many have benefited from ageing, with the top wines coming from the 2016 and 2017 vintages which were showing well.

General vintage quality is similar to that of Bordeaux, despite the region being cooler, but wines typically have more concentration, so you’d expect the 2016s to be scoring highly.

While many are drinking well now, and worthy of opening with a nice meal among friends (lean cuts of meat, cassoulet, roast duck and hard cheese), most will benefit from further ageing (around five years) so it’s worth buying a few for both immediate and long-term drinking pleasure.

See the top scoring Cahors wines

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