All older vintage wines have been purchased from a single collector’s cellar. Pictures can be requested before shipment.
Bernardins Beaumes de Venise Rouge Cru Cotes du Rhone is made from 65% Grenache, 25% Syrah, 5% Mourvedre and 5% Grenache Blanc.
Bright ruby color with cherry tinges. Complex black fruit aromas on the nose enhanced by spicy notes. Rounded palate with good length.
The wine is drinking well right now and can be kept for another 10 years.
Situation
Spreads out over the south-east side of the Dentelles de Montmirail hills, in Beaumes de Venise in the southern part of the Rhone valley.
Terroir
On a poor sandy, hungry and arid soil consisting of tender limestone and gritty zones of sandy mollasse.
In the vineyard
The vineyards and their terroir are the essence of our wines. This is where everything starts and where we focus our efforts throughout the year. You can’t make great wine without great grapes.
The viticulture is essentially done by hand. Five people work full-time in the vineyards. They are supplemented by seasonal employees who work during bunch thinning and the harvest in order to bring out the very best in our vines. Working by hand and the attention each vine gets are fundamental. Pruning, de-budding, trellising, leaf removal and picking are thus carried out by hand with the utmost care.
We prepare the soil by using good old-fashioned ploughing. Organic compost is made from grape marc (the discarded stalks and skins).
As a way of protecting the plants, we only use phytosanitary products when necessary and within strict guidelines by staggering the treatments appropriately, to minimise the amount of chemicals used. We prefer to use as much as possible manual and organic techniques . Leaving natural grass cover, removing buds and leaves from the vines, preserving biodiversity around the vineyard: olive, almond and cypress trees, wild rosemary and capers.
Winemaking
We make two red wines at the estate. Terroir wines shaped by the two classic Côtes du Rhône varieties: Grenache and Syrah. We don’t follow any winemaking recipe but are constantly searching for the perfect expression of terroir and each vintage’s particular characteristics. We don’t go for overripe grapes and over-extraction, as we think the wine has to stay refreshing and balanced.
Leaving the wine for 15 days in concrete vats, we try to gently extract the tannins and anthocyanins essential for the wine’s structure and colour. The wine doesn’t come into any contact with wood during ageing. This way the characteristics of our terroir can fully express
Serve with a meal especially red meat, game and cheese.
Chateau Cabrieres Cotes du Rhone Rouge Vieilles Vignes is made from 50% Grenache and 50% Syrah.
Château Cabrières’ Côtes du Rhône vineyard is located south of Orange, on the edge of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. The area of the vineyard is 1.53 hectares. The soil is comprised of clay-limestone mixed with pebbles.
Bright cherry red color with an expressive red fruit nose (strawberry and raspberry). Soft tannins in mouth, with freshness and spices. This CDR tastes like a baby Châteauneuf-du-Pape!
Pairs with charcuterie, pizza, pasta and mild cheeses.
Review:
A blend of equal parts Syrah and Grenache from vines not far from the domaine of Marcoux, the 2017 Côtes du Rhône offers a great nose of currants, kirsch, dried earth, and savory garrigue. Sweetly fruited and balanced, it has plenty of richness as well as a light, deliciously drinkable style." -
Jeb Dunnuck (August 2018), 89-91 pts
Grand Veneur Cotes Du Rhone Les Champauvins is made of 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 10% Mourvedre
Intense, brilliant garnet-red colour. It reveals lovely fruit, loads of body and a heady bouquet of ground peppers, raspberries cherry liqueur, currants, and spice box. Full-bodied and dense, it tastes more like a "baby Châteauneuf" than a Côtes du Rhône.
A complete wine, rich and elegant, thanks to the harmony of all the elements which make it up.
Drink between 1 and 6 years.
Soil type DOMAINE GRAND VENEUR “Les Champauvins” stretches on 34 ha classified in Côtes du Rhône. The plots are located in the northern border of Châteauneuf du Pape, exactly from 3 meters outside the appellation. A small lane of rocks going through the rocky plateaux has been decided to be the AOC limit in 1936. Here, soils are made of red clay and rocks (pebbled stones of quartz). The quantity of rocks can be amazing as they can completely cover the soil (see picture). In summer and during the day, the rocks temperature will increase to 55°C. This accumulated heat will be get back to the vines during nights . Day after day, this unique phenomenon allow the grapes to reach a perfect maturity and produce a unique wine. Winemaking & Ageing Traditional, in stainless steel vats. Harvest crushed and destemmed. Fermentation in temperature controlled vats at 28°C. Eighteen-day vating period with “pigeage”. Grenache is aged in concrete vats, Syrah and mourvèdre in 4 years old barrelsntense, brilliant garnet-red colour. It reveals lovely fruit, loads of body and a heady bouquet of ground peppers, raspberries cherry liqueur, currants, and spice box. Full-bodied and dense, it tastes more like a “baby Châteauneuf” than a Côtes du Rhône. A complete wine, rich and elegant, thanks to the harmony of all the elements which make it up.
Review:
"The Grenache dominated (there is 30% Syrah) 2019 Côtes Du Rhône Les Champauvins is perfect for readers looking for a wine that over-delivers and won’t break the bank. A great nose of black cherries, currants, roasted garrigue, licorice, and Provençal spice notes give way to a medium to full-bodied, ripe, balanced, straight up terrific and pleasure bend Côtes du Rhône that will deliver the goods for 4-6 years."
- Jeb Dunnuck (October 2020), 91-93 pts
Charles Thomas Cotes du Rhone Rose is made from 50% Syrah, 50% Grenache.
Tasting Notes:
Very charming pale rose color. The wine displays lots of fresh fruit aromas such as strawberry and watermelon. The palate is focused and very well balanced with again some strawberry and ripe red fruit notes. The finish is quite pleasing and long with a little spiciness and freshness to it.
Review:
"Khaki orange color. Aromas of ripe plum, fresh wild strawberries, and rose hip with a supple, crisp, dry-yet-fruity full body and a smooth, delightful, medium-length shale and dried herbs finish with no oak flavor. A rock solid Côtes-du-Rhone Rosé that hits every note."
- Beverage Testing Institute (March 2021), 91 pts - Gold Medal
Charles Thomas Cotes Du Rhone Rouge is made from 50% Syrah, 40% Grenache, 10% Mourvèdre
Ruby wine with overtones of red berry fruits. Round and supple with smooth aftertaste.
56 Ha grown organically since March 2009 (in conversion). Part of the vineyard is plowed with horses. Mechanical harvest. Yields: 48 hectoliters per Hectares. Average age of the vines : 30 years old.
A good all round red wine for meat courses, poultry and light cheeses. Best drunk now while fresh with good keeping up to 4 years.
Segries Clos Jean Alesi Cotes du Rhone Rouge is made from 1/3 each of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre.
This wine was originally called Segries Lanzac Clos Hermitage Cotes du Rhone Rouge
This 3.5 hectare vineyard, located in the famous “Quartier de la Chartreuse de Villeneuve-les-Avignon”, has been owned by the Formula 1 race car driver Jean Alesi since 1995. It is managed by Château de Ségriès.
This wine is a blend of 33% Grenache, 33% Syrah, and 33% Mourvedre sourced from 40-year-old vines. It was fermented in concrete vats then aged for nine months in 5% new oak barrels. The wine is a very grapey color in the glass. There is a light nose of tightly packed black fruit, dried herbs, pepper, and licorice. In the mouth there are tight-grained blue fruit, fine, powerful tannins, and a little strawberry flavor breaking loose. With air the wine reveals pencil and pepper flavors along with the structure for aging.
Yield: 40 hl/ha
Age of the vines: 40 years.
Vinification: 21 days skin maceration in temperature controlled concrete vats
Ageing: 9 months oak aging -5% new French oak from Seguin Moreau cooper and 95% of 1 year old barrels.
Delicious with roast meat, grilled vegetables, strong cheese and chocolate desserts.
Opus One 2014 is made from 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc, 6% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot and 2% Malbec.
Of the great European wine families, the Rothschilds are perhaps the best known. And Baron Philippe de Rothschild is perhaps the best known of this great family. At the age of 20, Baron Philippe took on the management of Château Mouton Rothschild from his father Baron Henri. Philippe’s vision changed the world of wine: he invented Château bottling, commissioned great artists to illustrate his wine labels – and, in partnership with Robert Mondavi in 1979, created Opus One.In the 1980s, after her father’s death, Baroness Philippine de Rothschild left a stage career that included the Comédie Française and the Renault-Barrault Theatre Company, bringing her own exquisite style and creativity to the design, construction, and operation of Opus One.Among great New World wine pioneers, Robert Mondavi is an international icon. Bringing a passion for excellence to everything he did, Robert Mondavi led a renaissance in California fine wine for over six decades. Among other accomplishments, he introduced temperature-controlled fermentation, French oak barrel aging, and high-density viticulture to a fledgling American wine industry. But life was not only wine for Robert Mondavi: he broadened the American cultural palate by marrying fine wine to food, music, and the arts. One of few Americans to have received the French medal of the Legion of Honor, Robert Mondavi showed extraordinary vision as co-founder of Opus One.
Reviews:
The 2014 Opus One is not as showy or obvious as some of the other surrounding vintages, but it will have its day. Stylistically, the 2014 is bright and also a touch linear, with a construction built more on focus rather than opulence. Readers should plan on giving the 2014 another few years in bottle at a minimum. The mid-weight style is a bit Old World-leaning in this striking, super-classic Opus One. -- Antonio Galloni 96 Points Blended of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc, 6% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot and 2% Malbec, the Opus One 2014 Proprietary Red Wine sports an inky purple color and nose of crushed black and red currants, black cherries and mulberries with touches of underbrush, sautéed herbs and pencil shavings plus a waft of spice box. Medium-bodied, finely crafted and with an energetic line lifting the red and black fruits, it has a bold frame of grainy tannins and a very long, earth and spice-layered finish. -Robert Parker 96 Points |
Velette Orvieto Secco is made from 30% Trebbiano, 30% Grechetto, 20% Malvasia, 15% Verdello and 5% Drupeggio.
The result of centuries of devotion, selection and experience, this wine is the taste portrait of this area: cool as the air on the Orvieto rock, soft as the surrounding hills, direct, frank, open and sincere like the local people. Brilliant, pale straw-color with emerald reflections. The bouquet is ntense and filled with fresh fruit and floral nuances. In the palate, complex nuances of lemon, lime and apricots with a beguiling roundness and a fruity finish with a touch of bitter almond.
Origin of the name: A tribute to the three families of workers who were responsible for the farms on this hillside from the early 19th century and who have cultivated the grape varieties of Orvieto D.O.C. for generations.
Pairs with vegetables, fish, seafood, fresh and aged cheeses.