The first thing you learn when visiting southwest France is that it’s not quite French. Walk into a café out in the country, you might hear Occitan, a language roughly equidistant between French and Catalan. Look at a road sign, and you will instantly get lost, because place names in this part of France look like they’re written in Celtic. However, wine is an international language, and in Pacherenc, growers use Gros- and Petit Manseng to make pure magic that anyone can understand. Christine Dupuy of Domaine Labranche Laffont makes brilliant red wines under the Madiran appellation, but her white wines might be the real treasure. This is the most complex, headiest wine of the newsletter. Aromas of peach, kiss melon, Red Delicious apple, lavender, candied pineapple, honeycomb, almond biscotti, and big salt crystals that come in small jars. The palate shows notes of papaya, Ataulfo mangos, lemon zest and Parmesan rind, texturally rich thanks to several months lees aging, but bursting out of its skin with acidity. Fans of Jurançon will find a kindred spirit. Fans of wine will simply love it. Duck and roast chicken, mushroom dishes, sweet potatoes, white fish, pork, and risottos will all work brilliantly.