COSTE-UBESSE

La Côte-qui-regarde-au-nord is a nod to the identity of Coste-Ubesse. The vineyards face Ubesse—Ubac in Occitan—meaning north. It is on two adjoining plots totaling 2.85 hectares that Philippe Reboul and Jean-Luc Saumade work in harmony with the surrounding nature, practicing organic farming. We are in Pic Saint-Loup, in the Languedoc.

Located in the commune of Saint-Mathieu-de-Tréviers in the Hérault, this site is a stony clay-limestone hillside over fissured marl. Its north-facing orientation tempers the harsh intensity of the summer sun and protects the vines from sudden winter assaults.
“Everything here encourages the calm, steady growth of the grapes until full maturity—the grapes that make my wines,” says Jean-Luc.

Syrah, including one parcel planted in 1971 by Jean-Luc’s grandfather, is surrounded by strawberry trees, holm oaks, Aleppo pines, junipers, rockroses, rosemary, and the full array of garrigue shrubs. The estate is planted with Syrah, Grenache, Cinsault, and Sauvignon Blanc.

We are here with Jean-Luc and Philippe, whose meeting naturally brought together two shared destinies.
“My grandfather Eugène, walking through his vineyards, taught me to observe the cicadas, as if married to the bark of a strawberry tree, a holm oak, or a tall Aleppo pine,” recalls Jean-Luc Saumade.

Philippe Reboul, whose father and grandfather both pursued agricultural careers, initially followed a very different path.
“Many years ago, when it came time to choose my educational direction, pursuing a career in agriculture was not acceptable to my parents. They knew too well the precariousness of those professions, and I had no say in the matter.”

“And yet, without ever really articulating it, I had always envisioned myself in my father’s role. Deep down, I needed to return to it for the natural order of things to be restored. Thanks to Jean-Luc, who reached out his hand to me, that return has now happened.”

The Legend of Pic Saint-Loup

Three brothers—Guiral, Alban, and Thieri Loup—all fell in love with the beautiful Bertrade. They left to fight in the Crusades without knowing which of them she would choose as her husband. When they returned from the Holy Land, their beloved had passed away. They decided to live as hermits on the summits of three neighboring peaks: Thieri Loup on the highest, Guiral and Alban on the other two.
Each year on March 19, they lit a fire in Bertrade’s memory.

In remembrance of Thieri, the last to pass away, the highest peak was named Pic Saint-Loup.
Source: Syndicat de l’AOP Pic Saint-Loup