WINE OF THE WEEK: Château Famaey L'Impression Malbec Cahors 2022, France

£14.95, Yapp Brothers

To celebrate settling into my usual haunt north of Cahors in southwest France, I'm dedicating this week's slot to a luscious little Cahors from the family-owned and run Château Famaey in Puy l’Évêque.

It's a wine for everyone who loves Malbec and/or everyone who loves the red wines of the Lot Valley's Cahors appellation.

Forget black wines and confrontational tannins, if that's how you think of Cahors. This is Cahors at its most alluring, fruit-filled and supple, but also expressive of its terroir, with graphite and ashy mineral notes and the gentlest of tannins shimmering softly under the plum and bramble-jelly fruit.

L’Impression is Château Famaey’s entry-level Cahors (I’m looking forward to tasting the others) and is 100% Malbec from the their own 40ha of vines on the clay and gravel terraces of the Lot Valley.

Here the family cultivates with respect for nature, recognised since 2019 with HVE (High Environmental Value) level 3 certification. Second-generation Maarten Luyckx – they’re of Belgian origin – has been in charge of winemaking since 2007.

The vines for L’Impression are 15–45 years old, from the pebbly soils of the second terrace, and it’s vinified without oak and aged for 12 months in concrete vats, highlighting its fruit and silky texture.

You could serve it with classic dishes of the Lot, such as duck confit, magret de canard, cassoulet (you don’t have to have a powerhouse of a red with cassoulet) and lamb (the celebrated local breed is agneau fermier des Causses du Lot), but it has plenty of other things in its orbit.

I enjoyed it with porchetta with salsa verde, baked aubergine with miso, peas and green beans with a moscatel vinaigrette, and octopus on a smoked paprika flavoured potato purée. It wasn't upended by the salsa verde or the green veg and vinaigrette and I admit I was surprised how well it went with the octopus.

Whatever you eat, heed the advice on the label and serve it at around 16ºC, much cooler than room temperature. 13%. Empty bottle weight: 420g.

Château Famaey L'Impression Malbec Cahors 2022, Cahors, France

£14.95, Yapp Brothers

#wine #France #Malbec #wineandfood #winepairing #red