🥃 Marc du Languedoc

Marc du Languedoc is a protected EU geographical name for a spirit made from grape marc of Languedoc and Roussillon. The marc comes from wines that may be declared as AOC «Languedoc», and with the additional names «Banyuls», «Muscat de Frontignan» or «Muscat de Saint-Jean-de-Minervois» from wines of precisely those appellations. The strength at sale is from 40% ABV.

The zone covers the departments of Aude, Hérault, Pyrénées-Orientales and the western part of Gard: a broad “amphitheatre” from the Pyrenees and the Cévennes to the Mediterranean. 14 white and 12 red and grey varieties are allowed, including grenache, syrah, carignan and the muscats. Rainfall ranges from 400 to almost 1,000 mm a year.

Red-wine marc is distilled or stored within 48 hours of pressing, while white and rosé marc is fermented. Four distillation methods are allowed; the yield is 5 to 15 litres of pure alcohol per 100 kg of marc, the distillate is up to 72% vol., and distillation is finished by 31 March.

White marc rests in vats for at least 6 months, aged marc for at least 1 year in oak of up to 600 l. Label mentions: «blanc», «vieux» from 5 years, «hors d'âge» from 10. Muscat marcs are usually left white: the specification describes notes of geranium and elderflower in them. Marc from Banyuls is mostly aged. In the EU the name has been protected since 12 June 1989 (PGI-FR-02074).

Why this matters to you. The additional name on the label shows which wine the marc comes from, but it is not the wine itself. WHO reminds: there is no safe dose of alcohol.