A Guide to the Wines of Mataburro

We are longtime fans of the Mataburro wines and if you're not yet, it's about time that changed!

We visited winemaker Laurent last year down in the depths of Roussillon in southern France to understand the terroir and his winemaking philosophy. Despite the intense heat and difficult climatic conditions, he produces light and elegant wines that have garnered somewhat of a cult following. Here is a breakdown of what we have available at time of writing;

A brand new cuvée

Let's kick off with a brand new wine, Quartet Blanc 2024. This is a skinsy, white cuvée made with grapes purchased from a nearby organic grower. Laurent has always expressed a desire to produce more white wines but is quite limited by his vines so a negotiant wine is the perfect solution. This blend of Viognier and Macabeo shows a mineral focus with subtle stone and tropical fruit notes. Really lovely texture too. 

A special collaboration

We couldn't quite believe our eyes when we first saw this label. Two of our favourite winemakers combining their grapes to produce a magnum only one-off, Mata Mosse 2024! Domain Mosse in the Loire provides the Chenin Blanc and Laurent adds in his Macabeo. We haven't tried our bottle yet but we already know it's going to be special. A tiny quantity landed on these shores so don't miss out!

The Return of Old Favourites

We have just received new vintages of much beloved Otium and Idoine. The red and white blend, Otium 2024 now includes some grapes from the vines of the previously mentioned Alain Castex and is a lot more concentrated and deeper than the 2023 vintage with a darker fruit profile alongside bright acidity and floral aromatics. Idoine 2024 is the 100% Merlot cuvée which is light and chillable. Really beautiful concentration of fresh red fruit with some subtle candied notes.

A rare gem

Laurent studied under southern natural wine legend Alain Castex who sadly passed away in 2023. In the first harvest since his death, Laurent was offered grapes from his old mentor's Grenache Gris vines so combined them with his own Macabeo grapes and created a one-off skin contact wine only available in magnum, appropriately named Guru 2023.

From the Cellar

We have had so many great wines stashed away in the cellar but now they can finally be yours. Quartet 2023 is a juicy blend of red grapes alongside that Highbury Library favourite, Muscat! Say no more. If you liked the sound of the lighter and more delicate Otium 2023 we have one bottle left in stock. And if you want something seriously rare and unique, look no further than Otium Reserve 2020!  Another one off wine from Laurent that was made in a barrel that wasn't topped up. The gentle oxidation has resulted in a more complex and savoury expression of this already excellent cuvée. Another gastronomic wine, that offers the most body of any of the Mataburro line-up is Totem 2023. Made from Mouvedre grapes, this feels more classically southern French in style but still shows Laurent's signature delicate touch and somehow even offers bright acidity. We have one bottle of Idoine 2023 in stock and last but certainly not least, we still have the much loved rosé cuvée Mura Mura 2023 available. 

Plenty to enjoy...

Happy drinking!