There was a southern French tradition during the 19th and 20th centuries (mostly fizzling out around the 1980s) that saw many small family producers crafting fortified wines that aged for absurd lengths of time in barrel. These wines were typically sold to merchants or enjoyed in chic Parisian restaurants, but the winemakers usually held a barrel or two back for special occasions—a family member’s birthday, an anniversary, a get-together; whatever or whenever it was, the winemaker would only bottle what was needed. When these vins doux naturels (fortified sweet) wines fell from the grace of popularity, most winemakers left the barrels where they were until their rediscovery.

In the early 2000s, Phillipe and Sandrine Gayral (who now own the largest collection of vin doux naturel wines from the 1900s), started scouring the countryside of Rivesaltes, Banyuls, and Maury in search of these “forgotten barrels.” They would meet with the families, who would then point them to their one or two remaining foudres containing vin doux naturel from decades past. Assuming nobody cared about the wine, some estates were ecstatic when Phillipe and Sandrine offered to buy the barrels and bottle them for resale; others, however, took years to convince. And then, there were some estates that would tell them the barrel in question was from another local producer, bought by a friend of a friend long ago—so they would have to follow whatever breadcrumb trail remained!

Southern France’s Vin Doux Naturel (VDN) was first made in 13th century when mutage was discovered. Put simply, this is a process where a neutral spirit is added to prematurely kill yeast and suspend fermentation, leaving a concentrated and sweet wine with elevated alcohol—essentially the same practice used to make Port wines. Today’s Rivesaltes was produced by a historic cooperative winery in the eastern Pyrénées that was established by eight winemakers in 1909. After crafting the wine in 1975, it sat in casks for decades until it was discovered by the Gayrals and bottled at their home base in 2014, without any additions or treatment.

This 1975 Rivesaltes reveals a vibrant mahogany core with deep amber tones. It swirls heavily with intense viscosity that gives you an idea of the massively pungent, almost Sherry-like aromas to come. Expect red and black plum preserves, figs, dates, orange marmalade, assorted warm spices, toasted nuts, honeycomb, dried orange peel, sandalwood, and a lingering candied fruit sensation that is tinged with a slight herbal component. The youthfulness of this ancient gems is extraordinary: It shows so much lift and energy on a palate that is populated with a potpourri of dried fruit and countless savory components. You’d think a high-alcohol, fortified sweet wine would be cloying and unctious—not this! It’s amazingly bright with lifted notes of acidity that further assist in taming the already-moderated sweetness (aging decades in a barrel certainly helped, too). This has easily withstood the test of time, so there is no rush to drink this—it will last decades longer should you want it to. Enjoy in all-purpose glasses around cellar temperature and pair it with an assortment of dried fruits, cheese, and nuts—as either an apéritif or a dessert—or take the pairing adventure up a notch and plug it in where a dry wine might otherwise go, like with a Moroccan lamb tagine. It’ll work, believe me, but regardless—even if you just sip it slowly on its own—don’t miss the profound experience that is this wine. It’s too memorable to pass up!