The Complete Guide to La Sorga: Nearly Every Bottle We Carry from Antony Tortul
Ask five people in the shop what their favorite natural wine producer is, and you will get at least two answers of "La Sorga." We currently carry fifteen different bottlings from this one Languedoc estate, which is a lot even by our standards, so we figured it was finally time to write the guide we keep giving out verbally at the register.
The Guy Behind the Labels
Antony Tortul started La Sorga in 2008, after several years working other people's vineyards across the south of France. He began the way a lot of the interesting négociants do: buying grapes. He drove around the Aude and Hérault departments, found growers who were already farming organically or biodynamically, and made wine from fruit he did not own. That changed in 2013, when he started planting and tending vines of his own. These days La Sorga farms across roughly 25 hectares scattered over the region, some of it vines pushing past a hundred years old.
What we find most interesting about Tortul's project is the ground itself. His parcels sit on limestone clay, schist, basalt, sand, and granite, often within a short drive of each other, and it shows in the glass. Two wines made a mile apart can taste like they came from different countries. Everything is farmed organically at a minimum, a good chunk of it certified biodynamic, and the winemaking stays hands off from there: native yeast, no fining, no filtration, and zero sulfites added at any point. Nothing is corrected in the cellar. What comes off the vine is what ends up in the bottle, quirks included.
You will also recognize a La Sorga label before you ever taste the wine. They are loud, a little unhinged, and part of what gave Tortul a reputation in natural wine circles well before people had tried a single bottle. It fits. The wines themselves have a similar energy: honest, occasionally strange, never boring.
One more thing worth knowing before you shop: because these are small batch cuvées that change from vintage to vintage, what is on this list today might not be here in six months. If something below catches your eye, we would grab it sooner rather than later.
The Orange Wines
This is where La Sorga does its best and strangest work, and it is the biggest category we carry from him.
Sorgasme 2023 ($42.00) The workhorse of the lineup and probably the bottle most of our regulars already know by name. It is a field blend of five white grapes, Colombard, Ugni Blanc, Terret, Sauvignon Blanc, and Marsanne, all fermented together on their skins. The nose leads with ripe mango and a hit of citrus zest, almost tropical, but the palate pulls it back with real minerality and a finish that just keeps going. We reach for this one with duck confit, manchego, roast pork, or a bowl of something spicy like Thai curry. It has the acid and texture to stand up to heat.
Sorgasme DE LUXE 2023 ($48.00) Same wine, extended skin contact. Tortul leaves this version on the skins longer, which pulls more color and more grip into the final wine. It reads richer and more full bodied than the standard bottling, though the same exotic, mineral core is still there underneath. If you loved the regular Sorgasme and want something with more weight for a heavier meal, this is the move. It also comes in a Sorgasme Magnum, 1.5L, $80.00, if you are hosting and do not want to open three bottles.
The Reds
Yggdrasil 2024 ($61.99) A Cabernet Franc and Merlot blend made with zero sulfites and left unfiltered, which gives it that bright, slightly leafy quality natural Cab Franc drinkers chase. Juicy up front, with peppery spice and an herbal edge that keeps it interesting through the whole glass. This is the bottle to bring to a dinner party where someone is serving duck, mushroom risotto, or a proper charcuterie spread.
Tradition 2023 ($33.99) An unusual pairing on paper, mostly Merlot with a splash of Sauvignon Blanc and a touch of Muscat, and it tastes exactly as unusual as that sounds, in the best way. The nose comes in hot with Burlat cherry juice, elderberry, and blackcurrant bud, almost like biting into fresh fruit, before the palate turns smoky and mineral with pronounced cherry running through it. It finishes on pomegranate and blood orange. Pour it with mushroom risotto, duck, charcuterie, or anything braised low and slow.
Aubunite Red 2021 ($33.99) Built on Aramon Noir and Carignan, two grapes you do not see much of outside the south of France, and it drinks like a proper backyard red. Fresh and fruity with real cherry and raspberry character, serious body for the price point, and a playful, almost bouncy acidity. This is our go to bottle for Spanish tapas night, grilled lamb, backyard BBQ, or a plate of grilled sausages.
The Rosés
Chiyonofuji 2024 ($48.99) Not your typical rosé. Tortul pairs old vine Aubun with Picpoul here, and the result has far more texture and depth than the pale, thin style most people expect. Red fruit and floral notes lead the way, with a saline, crisp finish that keeps it food friendly. Grilled fish, charcuterie, Vietnamese spring rolls, and paella all work beautifully with this one.
Ouroboros 2023 ($34.00) This is the wine we point to when someone asks what makes natural wine fun. It is 82 percent Colombard and 18 percent Aramon, completely destemmed, spending 40 days on the skins in amphora before another 8 months resting in tank. The color is a pale, confusing red. The nose smells like a red wine, hawthorn, citrus, vine peach, rose, peony, but the palate drinks like a mineral, tension driven white. It genuinely throws people off in the best way. If you want a conversation starter bottle, this is it.
The Whites
A Freux 2023 ($31.00) This one is 100 percent Grenache Blanc in a standard 750ml bottle, organic and biodynamic, and a good entry point if you want to try La Sorga without committing to orange wine or a full magnum.
Tireur des Litres 2023 ($34.00) A blend of Ugni Blanc, Grenache Blanc, and Terret Bourret that drinks bigger than its price tag suggests. The nose carries real complexity, plum, apricot, pear, layered with mineral stone notes, and the palate is dense and full bodied with real length. It finishes on quince, gentle spice, and a chalky minerality that lingers. A great option if you want something white and serious without spending sixty dollars.
Why We Keep Coming Back to La Sorga
We could carry a fraction of what La Sorga makes and still have a strong shelf. We carry fifteen bottles instead because every one of them tastes like it was made by someone who actually cares where the fruit came from, and because Tortul's range, from an easy Tuesday Colombard to a reserve orange wine built to age, covers almost every situation you could drink for. Stop into the shop in NoLita and we will happily talk you through what is open that day, or browse the full list online. Just know that since these cuvées rotate with the harvest, what you see today is not guaranteed to be here next season.
