The other day I leafed through a couple of books that have been on my shelf for quite a while - handsome, illustrated books about France for wine-besotted travellers. Weird. They were eight or nine years old - not exactly antique - and yet a whole chunk was missing from the bottom of the map. No Languedoc-Roussillon, no Provence. Delightful though it might be to visit, Le Midi back then was no place for a serious wine fan to go prospecting. Boy, how things have changed.
It looks sleepy, the far south. Away from the bustling coast, you plunge into wild countryside and sparse villages that look as if they doze all day in the permanent heat haze of the summer sun. But, in what seems like the twinkling of an eye or less time than it takes to get the tongue smoothly around that cumbersome regional designation, the enormous region of Languedoc-Roussillon has woken up.
Instead of lazily churning out oceans of rubbishy plonk (remember, it has six times as many vineyards as the whole of Australia), it has become one of the most exciting places on the planet for quality wines at reasonable prices. Put that together with dramatic scenery, delicious Mediterranean-style food, guaranteed escape from the tourist hordes, and you have the makings of a few weeks of total bliss.
How come the Midi is undergoing what Oz Clarke describes as "a ferocious, proud revival"? As so often happens, a handful of pioneers led the way. I've mentioned Aime Guibert of Mas de Daumas Gassac before, and must again, because this glove manufacturer turned vigneron was the first to demonstrate serious faith in the Languedoc. Back in 1971, he bought a run-down estate in the hills above Montpellier and set about making a note-worthy, age-worthy Cabernet-based wine.
Guibert remains a leading light, not just for his Mas de Daumas Gassac red and white, but for the encouragement he has given others to treasure native grape varieties. Carignan, Grenache, Syrah, Cinsaut, Mourvedre - these are grapes that can produce fleshy red wines with distinctive southern flavours. Now presented under the Moulin de Gassac label (see Bottle of the Week), the range Aime Guibert produces from the best fruit of 800 local growers encompasses both single varietal wines and - more exciting, to my mind - interesting blends. These are super wines for everyday drinking but, if you visit Daumas Gassac, you'll hardly want to leave without a few bottles of the famous estate wine - the white to enjoy soon, the red to stash away.
The Midi harbours many other dedicated winemakers these days, with striking results on two levels. There are plenty of straightforward, well-made varietal bottlings - perfect for casual guzzling. And, one step up, there are countless gems. These are wines that some passionate, fastidious grower has poured his whole soul into, together with the sun-ripened, herb-and-iodine-tinged flavours of the south. And it's worth meandering off the beaten track to seek them out.
"It's not as difficult as it sounds," says Paddy Keogh of Wines Direct in Mullingar. "Even though it's a such vast area, it's accessible. You can get down the auto-route quickly to Montpellier or Narbonne." Here is a man who knows the terrain backwards, having signed up more Languedoc-Roussillon stars than any other wine merchant in Ireland.
Domaine de L'Hortus at Pic St-Loup, Domaine Luc Lapeyre in Minervois, Chateau des Estanilles in Faugeres, Domaine du Grand Cres in Corbieres , Domaine Gardies down in Roussillon . . . those are just some of the winners in his line-up of 16 southern French producers. But it's rare these days to come across an Irish list devoid of Midi magic, so holidaying winos have no excuse for not doing their homework.
In the wild and wonderful Coteaux de Languedoc, the up and coming sub-regions of Faugeres and St Chinian have their own appellation controlee , while the villages of Pic St-Loup and La Clape are probably the best of the dozen that have the right to feature their name on the label. Further west towards Carcassonne is the Minervois, where Jancis Robinson bought her summer house some years ago, mistakenly imagining it would be an escape from the world of serious wine.
Progressing south, the wine route leads to Corbieres and Fitou, then - close to Perpignan - the Cotes du Roussillon, distinctly Catalonian in feel. It would be an unpardonable sin of omission for anybody who gets this far not to drive on down to the little town of Banyuls close to the Spanish border. Its dessert wine, made from Grenache Noir, is an unusual treat, especially if you have a weakness for chocolate in your pud. Nearby, Collioure's red wine is as heady as its little port is pretty.
But you don't have to travel so far to experience the Midi revival at first hand. Travelling east of the Rhone rather than west, southern Provence is also studded with wine surprises in a much more manageable area. The Cotes de Provence and Bandol with its mighty reds are at Marseilles' back door, while the Coteaux d'Aix-en-Provence stretch west from Aix to Les Baux, whose cliff-top citadel makes it one of the most spectacular wine villages you'll ever come across. Overall, there are far fewer dynamic producers (and far more tourists, and higher prices) than in Languedoc-Roussillon - but certainly enough to yield worthwhile plunder.
Whether you're there or here, you'll notice that the southern sun-belt is now a key source of inexpensive, easy-drinking white wines and some extremely tasty roses - just right for a summer lunch. But the wines to stock up on, the ones worth risking your last francs and a broken axle for are rich, dark, smouldering, glorious reds.
Vintage Snapshot
1996, 1997: quite difficult years for a region that normally enjoys reliable weather. 1998: excellent, but early frost damage means smallish quantities.
Get the Flavour
Red: Domaine d'Aupilhac Cuvee Lou Maset, Vin de Pays du Mont Baudile, 1997 (Searsons, £6.95; also On the Grapevine Dalkey, Wine Centre Kilkenny, DeVine Wines Letterkenny). From Sylvain Fadat - definitely a name to note - a big, soft, fruity amalgam of Grenache, Cinsaut, Cabernet and Merlot. The wines that have made D'Aupilhac famous are meatier, more austere.
Moulin de Gassac Albaran, Vieilles Vignes, Vin de Pays de l'Herault, 1997 (O'Briens Fine Wines, £7.75). New-look labelling, new vintage, but still a great buy. See Bottle of the Week.
Chateau de Flaugergues, Coteaux du Languedoc La Mejanelle 1996 (Dunnes Stores, £9.99). Stonking is the word for this full-blooded, flavoursome wine, a well established favourite in Dunnes' middle-to-upper price range. Well made and very satisfying.
La Grange de Quatre Sous, Lo Molin, Vin de Pays d'Oc, 1996 (Wines Direct, £9.50 if you buy a case of wine, which may be mixed). I've just tasted Swiss producer Hildegard Horat's Malbec-Syrah blend for the first time, and I love it: tarry, rubbery, chewy, but rendered immediately likeable by all-enveloping rich, ripe fruit. Domaine Richeaume Cuvee Columelle, Cotes de Provence, 1996 (Karwigs Wine Warehouse Carrigaline, £15.85) A masterly wine, complex and intriguing, from another early pioneer in these parts, Henning Hoesch. New World addicts may baulk at its feral character - very south of France; the rest of us will sit back and enjoy its strong individuality.
Sweet: Domaine du Mas Blanc Banyuls Rimage, 1997 (Wines Direct as above, £17.75). You can drink Roussillon's compelling dessert wine when it's 15-25 years old . . . or fall for its decadent, chocolate-friendly charms while it's still young. This one is from a prominent estate with the new generation at the helm.
Other names worth a detour: Domaine Tempier, Bandol - stirring Mourvedre-based red wines from the Peyraud family Domaine de Trevallon, Les Baux - individualist Eloi Durrbach's Cabernet-Syrah blend has earned him recognition as one of the key figures in Provence. Chateau Vignelaure, Rians ex-racehorse-trainer David O'Brien's Coteaux d'Aix estate, dedicated to fleshy Cabernet-based red and delicate rose.
Buying Tips
A quick recap 1 Buy your wines to bring home direct from a good producer rather than a supermarket: better quality, warmer welcome. Growers love to sell their wine direct.
Note down the details of any wines you enjoy in local restaurants.
Drop into the nearest Maison des Vins for information, maps, contact numbers of worthwhile producers - then phone in advance.
Recommended Reading
Oz Clarke's Wine Companion: South of France (De Agostini Editions, £9.99 stg) outlines good itineraries, but even better are the hotel and restaurant recommendations and the terrifically useful A-Z of Main Wine Producers at the back.
The Wild Bunch: Great Wines from Small Producers by Patrick Matthews (Faber, £7.99stg) - a fascinating book, discussed in this column last year - mentions about 40 producers in the region.
Southern Discomfort
Reports coming in from the southern hemisphere suggest the last vintage of the century may not be one for treasured memories. In Chile yields were down 30-50 per cent on the record 1998 vintage, and winemakers played patience, waiting for the red grapes to develop ripe flavours and tannins.
Australia also reports output down in most areas - mainly because of a severe October frost - and quality variable. It was a tricky vintage for the Barossa and McLaren Vale; somewhat better for the Yarra Valley, the Hunter and Margaret River. Doesn't sound as if any of this will help prices, let alone flavours.