Having tasted the Plageoles Mauzac Nature from magnum with a group of vignerons in the Rhône valley, it was the fresh and frothy delights of this Plageoles specialty that set Rob on his merry way to Gaillac. This is old school fizz made using the méthode ancestrale (known locally as méthode Gaillacoise or méthode rurale). In simple terms the wine is put into bottle before it has fermented dry and it is the continued fermentation that gives the wine its bubbles. There is no other additions and no need for dosage. It is the natural residual sugar that produces the bubbles. The resulting wine is a delicate yet textural, citrus oil noted, slightly cloudy, off dry sparkling with only a gentle bubble. It is an orchard in a glass and displays a beautiful natural acidity to balance the kiss of sweetness. It is important to note that this is a very important, historical wine. It is not a product of modern trends. This wine was produced in Gaillac in the 16th and 17th centuries - before Champagne had bubbles! The Plageoles make it using exactly the same methods that were used by the local monks almost 500 years ago. So not only are have the Plageoles resuscitated many local, indigenous varieties on the edge of extinction, they have also brought back to life one of the region's most fascinating wines styles. It is something totally and deliciously unique of which Alice Feiring offers this evocative description: "The wine was like a wacky sandwich, earth on the attack, a flower shop in the middle and stone, cold, stone on the finish." Jaqueline Freidrich is clearly also a fan: "Drink their Mauzac Nature, a light, sparkling white, the minute in come on to the market and you will swear it's the freshet thing you have ever tasted." The Plageoles now use only the exceptionally rare Mauzac Rose variety - from a parcel of 40 year old vines cropped at 25hl/ha - for their Mauzac Nature. Another note from Bertie's favourite magazine: "Made from the local Mauzac grape; this is a very enjoyable sparkling wine. Very different to Champagne, it exhibits lots of fresh pear and fresh crushed apple characters. The palate is bone dry and displays a beautiful natural acidity with a purity and cleanness of fruits. Something different and unique for an aperitif." Decanter.com