Once extremely obscure and now just obscure, Picpoul de Pinet is the preferred "indigenous" white grape of the red dominated Languedoc region of southern France. It's easy to see how Picpoul (peek-pool) is on the rise popularity-wise as the grape offers white wines of substance and charm without being ostentatious or unwieldy. Moulin de Gassac provides an exemplary example here with an extra layer of richness to the fruit matched by a particularly assertive mineral element. Snappy melon and white pear fruits travel on an upward trajectory, secure on the tracks of focused acidity and wispy herbs. Purity and freshness are the key words (so often the case on these pages, no?) in this all purpose white wine lover's white wine. Not as light as Italian Pinot Grigio but certainly no thickly Chardonnay sub, this unoaked beauty offers refined satisfaction.