Visit France’s Languedoc wine region and discover the difference between Blanquette de Limoux and Crémant de Limoux!

Limoux is a lovely and typical market town in the départment of Aude, which is in the Languedoc region of South-west France and often referred to as ‘Cathar country’. It’s probably better known however for being the home of two famous French sparkling wines, Blanquette de Limoux and Crémant de Limoux.

These French sparkling wines provide an excellent value for money alternative to French Champagne and are widely available outside France. Did you know though that the origins of Limoux sparkling wines actually date back to 1531, before Champagne was famously discovered by Monsieur Dom Perignon? 

Whilst exploring France’s Languedoc-Roussillon wine region, using Carcassonne as our base, we took time out to explore the area around Limoux and to visit a couple of Limoux wineries and taste some of their famous Limoux sparkling wines - read about our wine trip below:

More about Limoux in France’s Languedoc-Roussillon wine region

The home of Limoux wines is around the town of Limoux in the département of Aude, situated towards the south of the Languedoc-Roussillon region of southern France. In the eastern foothills of the Pyrenees, Limoux is located just south of the famous, fortified city of Carcassonne and close to many other historic monuments and ‘Cathar’ castles, reflecting the region's fascinating and turbulent history - so a perfect wine tourism and wine travel destination!

Languedoc-Roussillon features a typical Mediterranean climate but the climate around Limoux is slightly cooler and moister than the rest of the region, creating ideal conditions for the ripening of Limoux’s famous white wine grapes. The soils are rocky, with clay, sandstone and limestone. This ‘terroir’ - often referred to as ‘Terror de Bulles’ - ‘Terroir of Bubbles’ - helps create wines with a greater acidity, which is a necessary component for an excellent sparkling wine!

 Limoux wines and the Limoux wine classifications

So history has it that the Benedictine monks from the Saint-Hilaire Monastery in Limoux produced the first sparkling wine in 1531, using the ancient Mauzac white grape. The name of the wine was ‘Blanquette de Limoux’, from the ancient ‘Occitan language’ expression, ‘the small white from Limoux’. 

In 1938, ‘Blanquette de Limoux’ became one of the first wine classifications, or AOCs (Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée) in the Languedoc region.

Limoux wine grapes

The traditional Limoux grape variety is Mauzac, which is only still grown in any quantity in south-west France,but this is slowly being replaced now by the more popular international grape varieties, Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc. Limoux sparkling wines made from Mauzac grapes tend to have more zesty acidity, with apple and floral flavors whereas those with Chardonnay as the base tend to be richer and more full-bodied, with lemon and oak flavours. In terms of Limoux red wine grapes, it is predominantly Merlot, with some Carignan, Grenache, Syrah and Malbec.

In 1938, Blanquette de Limoux became one of the first wine classifications, or AOCs (appellation d’Origine Contrôlée) in the Languedoc region.

Today Limoux wines are classified according to the following AOCs:

• AOC  Limoux (red and white wines)

• AOC Limoux Sparkling 

• AOC Blanquette de Limoux

• AOC Blanquette de Limoux Méthode Ancestrale 

• AOC Crémant de Limoux

What is the difference between Blanquette de Limoux and Crémant de Limoux?

The traditional Limoux sparkling wine, ‘Blanquette de Limoux’ must be made from at least 90% Mauzac grapes, with 9 months fermentation in the bottle. The process is the same as for the ‘traditional method’ of making Champagne. So after 9 months the bottles are opened, disgorged to remove the sediment and corked.

In 1990, in response to the demand for a real alternative to Champagne and a more internationally recognised sparkling wine, the ‘Crémant de Limoux’ AOC was introduced. Wines can be classified as Crémant de Limoux, when the grape composition is less than 90% Chardonnay/Chenin Blanc. To be specific the following is permitted: 40-70% Chardonnay, 20-40% Chenin blanc, 0-20% Mauzac and 0-10% Pinot noir.  The other difference is that the wine must be aged for at least 12 months in the bottle,  prior to disgorgement.

Today Limoux wineries have the option to produce either styles of sparkling wines - the more traditional Blanquette based on the Mauzac grape or the more internationally recognised Crémant style.

Tradition is also why some Limoux wineries choose to produce ‘Blanquette de Limoux Méthode Ancestrale’ wines, which have to be 100% Mauzac and cannot be disgorged. These naturally cloudy wines tend to be sweeter and fruity, with typically lower alcohol.

So, whilst staying in beautiful Carcassonne, we took a couple of days out to visit two quite different Limoux wineries - Antech, a large, well-established producer whose wines are exported all over the world and J. Laurens, an up and coming producer who came highly recommended by friends who live locally, near Carcassonne.

Antech Estate Limoux sparkling wines

La Maison Antech is a family owned Limoux winery which has been making traditional method sparkling wines across six generations. They specialise in producing the three styles of Limoux sparkling wines - Blanquette de Limoux, Blanquette de Limoux Méthode Ancestrale and Crémant de Limoux. Antech Limoux sparkling wines are now available in over 30 countries around the world, in top restaurants and top wine retailers and regularly win top industry awards.

Antech produces approximately 600-750,000 bottles of wine a year. They practice sustainable viticulture (certified in 2013), farming approximately 30 hectares of their own vineyards and all grapes are hand-picked. They also carefully select and buy grapes from other local wineries to make their wines.

Our visit to Antech 

Antech doesn't actually offer a wine tour involving seeing the winery or vineyards, but you can book a wine tasting. You could just turn up, but may need to wait a while to be attended to. If you require the tasting to be conducted in English we advise you telephone and arrange in advance. 

We tried a variety of all of the wine styles and we’re really impressed with the quality and also the value for money. You can see their range here. 

Antech is a top name in Limoux sparkling wine and we loved their wines. If you wish to sample wines from a  top Limoux winery, then we would certainly recommend you visit, but in terms of  a ‘wine experience’ it wasn’t particularly special. It was a very slick, ‘corporate’ experience, well executed but not really memorable, compared to others. 

Where to find Antech Estate

Maison Antech, Domaine de Flassian, Route de Carcassonne, 11300 Limoux

Domaine J. Laurens 

J.Laurens was recommended to us by friends who have lived in the area for several years. They advised that their sparkling wines were amongst the best and that it was well worth visiting for a wine tasting and a look around.

Domaine J Laurens is a 40 hectares wine estate, located just outside Limoux and a few kilometres from Carcassonne, producing some 400,000 bottles of Limoux sparkling wine per year. 60% of the grapes come from their own vineyards and 40% are bought in from other local growers to make their wines. The estate dates back to 1980 and is owned today by Jacques Calvel, a native of Limoux.

They practice limited yields, the hand-picking of grapes and a fermentation in the bottle of 12-36 months. They practise some organic processes and are currently in the phase of working towards full transition to organic.  A relatively small wine estate, they are growing year on year and their wines are shipped all around the world, across Europe, in the US, Canada, Japan, Australia and China. They are also gaining recognition in industry awards including the Decanter World Awards.

Our visit to J Laurens

Our visit lasted a couple of really enjoyable hours. We sat outside and tasted all of their wines, including two Blanquette de Limoux wines, a Blanquette de Limoux Méthode Ancestrale and two Crémant de Limoux wines, one of which was a delicious rosé. We loved them all and would highly recommend them!

Following our tasting, which was not only enjoyable, but also highly informative, we were able to wander around the winery. J Laurens is a small, tight-knit team, producing some excellent wines. Everyone was super-friendly and welcoming and if you plan to visit Limoux to discover their sparkling wines, we would highly recommend you pay them a visit!

Where to find Domaine J Laurens

Les Graimenous, Route de la Digne d’Amont, 11300 La Digne D’Aval

Other Limoux wineries in the area worth visiting:

Chateau Rives Blanques

Château Rives Blanques produces top-quality wines and as well as tasting the wines, there is an opportunity to have a vineyard and winery tour. You’ll need to book in advance though!

Domaine de Baronarques

The Domaine de Baronarques estate, owned by the Rothschild family, famous for its illustrious Bordeaux estates - is situated just outside Limoux and is definitely worth a visit to admire the beautiful château and vineyards, as well as the impressive and state-of-the-art stainless steel vat room and barrel halls. There are several different guided tours to select from and you can taste their range of fabulous white and red wines, which are on the expensive side, but a tour is certainly a great wine experience!

Domaine Saint Martin 

Located just 10km from Carcassonne in beautiful rolling hills, Domaine Saint Martin is a family run estate, producing wine and olive oil. 

A friend who used to live in the area recommended we visit, so we went along!

They farm some 130 hectares of vines and 5 hectares of olive trees and offer gîte accommodation which can be booked through Gîtes de France. They don’t actually produce wines under any of the Limoux AOcs, but as well as their own IGP Carcassonne and IGP Oc wines, they also offer other wines, including Limoux wines which can form part of the tastings.

We tasted a variety of different wines - and olive oils - all of which we really enjoyed. Overall a great experience in a lovely setting. We’d love to go back one day and stay in one of the gîtes!

Tips for visiting Languedoc and the Limoux wine region

Where to stay close to the Limoux wineries

Languedoc-Roussillon is a vast French wine region and is split into 3 sub-wine regions. Limoux is in Western Languedoc and a good base for exploring its wineries, wines and sights, is the famous, mediaeval, fortified city of Carcassonne. In my ‘tourist guide’ past I used to visit Carcassonne quite frequently, but it had been a while, so I was excited to return and to explore!

Carcassonne is made up of the old medieval city (‘le Cité’) and ‘La Bastide’, outside of the city walls.

We chose to stay at the Hotel Mercure Carcassonne la Cité. Not only is it located just outside the city walls, so there was no need for the car or a taxi to visit the fortified city, but the room was really comfortable and the facilities were excellent. The breakfast buffet was also great. We could walk to the town centre in La Bastide in about 15 minutes.

Getting to Carcassonne

You can fly direct to the local airport at Carcassonne or to the international airport at Toulouse. If you’re driving, Carcassonne in south-west France is easy to access by major motorway links.

Where to eat in Carcassonne

There are lots of choices when looking for a meal - lunch or dinner -  in Carcassonne, but like anywhere attracting lots of tourists it's good to have a recommendation, especially from a local!

We were keen to eat traditional ‘cassoulet’, the hearty bean stew that the Languedoc is famous for and friends recommended a lovely restaurant in le Cité called Comte Roger. It was superb - great food, not too pricey, great atmosphere and service and great wines too!

We were also recommended The Brasserie 4 temps and La table du Vatican, an Italian restaurant near the station.

 What to see in Carcassonne

Carcassonne is the largest and best conserved medieval fortress in Europe and as such it attracts many visitors each year. It can get very busy in the main Summer months, but ensure you make time to visit its inner ramparts, its château and Basilica Saint-Nazaire, whose stained glass windows are considered to be the most beautiful in the South of France. Allow a good couple of hours for this - you won’t be disappointed! 

You need to pay to visit the inner ramparts and castle but you can also walk for free around the exterior walls and the two main city gates, the Porte Narbonnaise and the Porte d’Aude. Enjoy strolling round the winding streets of the cité - very touristy in parts, but it retains its medieval charm and you really feel like you’ve stepped back in time!

It takes about 15 minutes to walk from the medieval cité and Porte d’Aude to la Bastide Saint-Louis, situated on the left bank of the River Aude. Dating back to 1260 the Bastide retains its amazing chequerboard street plan, based around the main square, Place Carnot. Take time to stroll its lovely streets and soak up the atmosphere - there are lots of shops, places to eat and drink and some beautiful old mansions and buildings. Place Carnot is a great place to go in the evening for a drink/dinner.

For ideas of what to do and see in Carcassonne see Tourism Carcassonne.

Where else to visit in the area

We spent a very enjoyable couple of hours in Limoux, strolling around the streets and having a very good and excellent value for money ‘plat du jour’ in the main square, Place de la Republique. See here for more information about what to do in Limoux.

Visit the beautiful Abbaye de Saint-Hilaire, located in between Limoux and Carcassonne, set in rolling hills and vineyards, with 1000 years of history to share.

Perhaps take a cruise on the famous Canal du Midi, with spectacular views over the medieval cité of Carcassonne.

Visit the ‘Francethis way’ website for ideas about what to see and do in the département of Aude and in the Languedoc-Roussillon region.’

Conclusion - our personal highlights

What’s not to like and to recommend when you can explore the beautiful Limoux vineyards in France’s famous Languedoc wine region and discover some excellent Limoux sparkling wines?? We spent a lovely couple of days exploring this beautiful region and its wines and would highly recommend staying in Carcassonne. Not only is it ideally located to explore Limoux, it’s a ‘must-visit’ French tourist destination!

We found the Limoux sparkling wines exceptional value for money and loved exploring Carcassonne and sampling its fabulous cuisine and Languedoc wines!

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