Château d’Agel
Minervios, France
Proud of their exceptional and diverse terrior, the men of Château d’Agel share their passion through their wine. They love the culture of the vine and it shows in their silky, rich wines.
Their Story
Among the beauty of ancient castles, tiny villages, rocky hills filled with vineyards and pine forests in the heart of Minervois, lies a charming corner of Agel with an astonishing castle which also used to be a fortress. Deeply rooted in history, part of Chateau d’Agel dates back to the 12th century.
The Château d’Agel winery was acquired in 2003 by Robin Budowski, a wine specialist and enthusiast. The property of Château d’Agel fit Budowski’s ideals perfectly, as the soils in the vineyard were considered to be the finest in Minervois. Currently, the winery produces 8 different wines, 5 of them red and 3 white. Wines from Château d’Agel have received international awards at numerous wine fairs and are exported to 14 different countries. Just like Robin is proud of his terroir, we are proud to be one of the few in the USA who’ve discovered the joys of drinking Château d’Agel.
Founded: 2006
Owner: Robin Budowski and Jeff Bernabeu
Winemaker: Jeff Bernabeu
Vineyard Location: Minervois
Vineyard Size: 42 ha
HOW WE MET
I use to work with a British man, Tim Marson, who introduced me to this producer. He claimed the wines were “uncommonly good” and the Brit was right; there is something truly special about the wines of Chateau d’Agel which are uncommonly rich and dense with a plush and seductive quality that somehow manage to stay true to the raw, rough and tumble Minervois spirit. These wines have a sheer joy in them and are an absolute pleasure to drink…not to mention Robin is a great character and storyteller.
Quick Facts on Minervois AOC
HISTORY: The history of Languedoc wines can be traced to the first vines planted along the coast in the fifth century BC. These are among the oldest planted vineyards in France. The Languedoc has belonged to France since the thirteenth century and the Roussillon was acquired from Spain n the mid-seventeenth century. The two regions were joined in the late 1980s
TODAY: The area has nearly 700,000 acres under vines and is one of the largest wine producing areas in the world. Production accounts for more than a third of France’s total wine production.
TERROIR: Classic Mediterranean climate characterized by a mild winter and a warm, dry summer. Sandstone soils are the most typical of the Minervois appellation. Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre blends; together these three varieties plus Carignan and Cinsault must be 50% of the final blend with no one variety exceeding 80%.