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Loin de l'Oeil is a full-bodied wine with buttery hints and lingering flavors, particularly of quince jelly. It has a long finish with notes of almond and hazelnuts balanced with fresh acidity. The must was fermented in oak and acacia barrels and then aged for another 6 months in oak barrels.
Len de l'El in Occitan or Loin de l'Oeil in French literally translated means: Far from the eye. It is a grape variety indigenous to the Gaillac wine region. The grape has a long stem and hangs far from its crossing on the vine shoot, "the eye," which gives its name to this grape variety. The wine grapes are vine-dried, by cutting off the main branch that supports most of the grapes from the bunches, 15 days before harvest in order to preserve acidity and concentrate aromas.
Almost a biblical theme one would think when reading the life history of passionate winemaker Bruno Duffau. As a hydraulic engineer, he traveled the world. Among other places, he lived in Brazil and later in Kenya. For some 20 years, he took his family (wife Anne and three children, Audrey, Simon and Yohan) in tow.
Fueled by his contact with winemakers (over water) in the Herault in France, as well as winemakers in Argentina and South Africa, Bruno decided to settle in Gaillac, a small town northeast of the city of Toulouse.
After overcoming the necessary obstacles, his dream came true in 2007 with the creation of Domaine Duffau, the first harvest followed two years later. In the beginning there was nothing at all except some vineyards. But this driven, very organized, technically skilled man made short work of a fallow hillside, in no time a road was built and under his direction a house was built, with opposite the wine outlet store, a storage for dry goods with underneath the wine making room. Initially there were six concrete tubs that he received as a gift from a neighbor. But now there are nine small stainless steel barrels and two epoxy storage tubs. To make red wine, he purchased three new concrete vats.
Some of the 15 acres of vineyards in the total 21-acre estate are owned, but there are also plots that are rented, a familiar system in many wine regions. Bruno himself describes it in one sentence "a beautiful terroir in green Gaillac, happy winemaker ánd farmer plus high quality local neighbors are my ingredients to make good wines off the beaten wine paths." One of the things he is doing now is with a grape that is rarely seen. This is the "loin de l'oeil. This white grape has something special, the bunches grow relatively far from the mother vine. In collaboration with a local university, a technique was developed in which the offshoot of the vine on which the bunches grow is cut about 15 days before harvest. However, ripening continues and the freshness in the grape is preserved.
