Paul Old was a professional dancer with the Australian Ballet for more than 20 years. When his body told him to stop, he did what few former dancers do: he enrolled at Charles Sturt University in Wagga Wagga to study wine science, then flew to the south of France and started over. Les Clos Perdus — the lost vineyards — was founded in 2003 from a garage beneath his apartment in the village of Peyriac-de-Mer, with 1.5 hectares and no playbook.
Backstory
Paul founded the estate with Hugo Stewart, though Hugo has since stepped away from the project. Today the winery is built around Paul Old and a small team, and in 2018 Faith Wilson — an arts PR professional who met Paul through the dance world — joined as an associate. What began as a single parcel garage project now spans 20 hectares across 32 to 35 distinct parcels. The name remains the key to the whole enterprise: tracking down abandoned old-vine parcels scattered across the Languedoc hillsides and bringing them back into production.
The Region
Les Clos Perdus draws from three distinct terroirs. The Corbières Maritimes around Peyriac-de-Mer offer deep clay soils with a coastal Mediterranean influence. The Hautes-Corbières provide lighter, stony clay soils at higher elevation. The Agly Valley in Roussillon — across the border into Catalan wine country — contributes grey and brown schist parcels of extraordinary age, including vines planted in 1895 and 1905.
Vineyards and Farming
All 20 hectares are farmed organically and biodynamically, treating the vineyard as a self-sustaining ecosystem. The oldest vines are over 120 years old. Varieties include Carignan, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Lledoner Pelut, Syrah, Cinsault, Macabeo, Grenache Gris, and Grenache Blanc. Hand harvesting into small crates with vineyard-based selection is standard across all parcels.
Winemaking
Fermentations are spontaneous, with no temperature control, in stainless steel and barrel. The approach is minimal throughout — no fining, no filtration, and natural clarification in vessel. Paul Old has described natural wine as "playing with your boundaries and your fears," and the winemaking reflects that willingness to accept uncertainty in exchange for authenticity. Project 108 is an experimental line made entirely without added sulfites.
The Wines
The estate produces Mire la Mer (Corbières Maritimes), Prioundo (Hautes-Corbières), L'Extrême (Agly Valley, Roussillon), L'Année Blanc and Rouge, Cuvée 111, and the experimental Project 108 series. The wines have appeared on the tables of Noma, Geranium, and Frantzén, and scored recognition from Wine and Spirits magazine for the Roussillon cuvées.