It is hard to imagine, in these troubled times, the green hills of Latakia. And yet, these lands that rise up from the Mediterranean, from the large port city of Latakia, are there, like a challenge to time and history. Since 2011, the urban area has radically changed, since it serves as a safe haven for Syrian domestic refugees from the inlands: industries have sprung up, domestic tourism keeps shops and services running, and despite the country's chaos, cultural and economic activities are alive and well.
Around the city, there are acres of market gardens and apple and citrus orchards. Olive groves, however, make the reputation of this poor soil terroir, dominated by clay and limestone mixed with flint, which they share with vines, planted on the most arid plots of the plateau, between 800 and 900 meters above sea level. Here, temperature differences between day and night are considerable, and the humidity coming in from the sea can be quite stifling. Here, the vineyards of Domaine de Bargylus await the early autumn. That which precedes the full ripening of the grapes, allowing the tannins to slowly mature and the aromatic freshness to be preserved despite the strong summer sunshine that gives these bottles their full-bodied taste.
This ancient Phoenician city is true to its winegrowing heritage, which has been passed down to us in bits and pieces through the ages. In his Naturalis Historia, the Roman Pliny the Elder mentions Mount Bargylus - today Jabal Al Ansariyeh - and points out that grapes grow there in abundance. And the Greek Strabo recounts that Laodicea, the former name of Latakia, "supplied the population of Alexandria with most of the wine it consumed". Only archaeological evidence remains of this bygone era, such as the Roman vats carved into the rock at the foot of the mountain. For centuries, winegrowing was only maintained by a few monks scattered here and there in the region's century-old monasteries, until the Saadé family decided to reintroduce it in 2003. To reintroduce it, to defend it and to keep it alive against all what Syria has been going through for over twelve years now.
Our wines from this terroir
