Visita Interiorem Terrae Rectificando Invienes Occultum Lapidem ("Visit the interior of the Earth and, by rectifying, you will find the hidden stone"). A phrase renowned among alchemists, known by the acronym VITRIOL, this enigmatic statement has endured through the ages as a call to exploration and discovery. Steeped in legends and the legacy of the Templars, Michael Chapoutier found his own "hidden stone": a legendary terroir in Latour-de-France, at the heart of Roussillon. Here, nature has woven a unique geological tapestry with dark schists that impart warmth, gneiss that bestows minerality and freshness, and clayey marl that balances the ensemble. It is not difficult to imagine why, centuries ago, these lands captivated the Templars... and today they captivate Chapoutier.
True to his visionary spirit, this master of French wine has skillfully translated the captivating and mysterious character of these hills into creations that are true expressions of place. At his Domaine Bila-Haut, each wine bears a name shrouded in mystery, as if it were another chapter in a hidden story revealed glass by glass.
One of them, Bila-Haut Occultum Lapidem Blanc, originates from an exceptional vineyard of white Grenache, grey Grenache, and Vermentino vines that thrive on gneiss soils, open to the Mediterranean and embraced by three massifs forming a natural amphitheatre. The climate is warm and sunny, perfect for the grapes to reach full maturity without losing freshness. Cultivated organically with biodynamic treatments, the harvest is conducted manually, with each bunch tended as if it were part of a treasure. After pressing without destemming, the must is naturally stabilised at a low temperature. Fermentation proceeds gently at 18°C, with 70% of the wine aged in stainless steel to preserve its purity and 30% in 600-litre French oak demi-muids, which impart complexity and texture. Malolactic fermentation is blocked, maintaining its vibrant acidity, and ageing on lees for 9 months adds volume and depth.
The result is Bila-Haut Occultum Lapidem Blanc, a wine that encapsulates within it the balance found only when one "visits" the interior of the Earth—or the terroir—and, by rectifying, extracts its true essence. Fresh, structured, and with an unmistakable mineral echo, it is the liquid testament that VITRIOL is not merely an alchemical axiom but a philosophy that, in the hands of Chapoutier, transforms into an extraordinary wine.