Mas de Lavail is located in sunny and dry Languedoc-Roussillon, between the Mountains of the Pyrenées and Corbières, in a little town named Maury. People of this region are very proud of their Catalan national heritage, where they speak their own language, deeply influenced by the Spanish culture. Its vignerons work hard in the vineyards, using leaf-pulling and hand-picking to extract wines of great concentration and flavor from the fertile terroir. Nicolas Battle (pronounced "buy") is a young winemaker of great talent and the fifth generation of his family to practice this noble profession. Together with his cousin, Lionel Lavail, they work this new domain of fantastic potential, with very old vines averaging 80+ years of age planted to the formidable black schist soils of this part of the Languedoc-Roussillon. Their 2007 vintage Mas Lavail Carignan Vieilles Vignes Terre d'Ardoise, produced from 100% old vines Carignan, is a shimmering garnet in color; at once both light and lively, warm and round, plump, ripe, juicy and succulent, with smooth rounded tannins and grapey fresh flavors that just plain deliciously please.