Owner of 15 estates across 850 hectares of vineyards from the Rhône to the Pyrenees and from the Cévennes to the Mediterranean, Jean-Claude Mas is the ambassador of the Languedoc and the champion of a certain art of living that he calls “Rural Luxury”.
“In the Languedoc, you can grow from what you do, not from what you own”, asserts Jean-Claude Mas.
Raised near Pézenas, the man is at the image of an Occitanie which reinvents itself day by day, proud to work his terroirs with the open-mindedness of the New World. Since 2000 and the creation of Domaines Paul Mas, he has established himself as the promoter of a luxury of the earth, which is the opposite of the luxury of the frivolous. To explore his properties spread over the Limoux, Terrasses du Larzac, Pézenas, Pays d’Oc, Grés de Montpellier, Corbières, Minervois, Roussillon, Costières de Nîmes appellations, it is with all senses awake, and spirit connected to the elements that he cultivates the vines and produces his wines, inspired by nature and his instincts.
“At home, innovation and tradition combine to feed a philosophy that we define as “Rural Luxury”: we want to create great affordable wines and stimulate real emotions, only from the senses. Isn’t that the luxury of today?”
Jean-Claude Mas shares the passions that drive him on a daily basis: landscapes with a strong character, from Carcassonne to Sète and from Perpignan to Nîmes; obvious, subtle or complex wines, from forty-five different grape varieties; the pleasures of flavours at the Côté Mas restaurant, established with a guest house in the winery at Montagnac, his “fief”; the love of horses housed nearby in a corral, for riding and ploughing; the need for simple products from the vegetable garden, the orchard, the beehives, the sea, and the meadows, which he cooks himself; the science of fine mechanics to be repaired and revved up; the sense of noble materials, art and craftsmanship…
With this book, Jean-Claude Mas offers a real invitation to discover his native region.
