I think my best recent Bandol blanc story is the one Kermit shared with me last December about a bottle of 1952 Sanary Blanc (AOC Bandol) he enjoyed in Provence along with his son, Anthony, Jean-Marie Peyraud, and Alain Pascal. He wrote me immediately to share the incredible tale of this sublime wine without a hint of oxidation. I can’t promise you that this bottle from Reynald Delille will turn into the same magical, timeless elixir, but it has the highest probability of any wine being made in Bandol today.

I am tempted to proclaim that this Hermitage tastes like those old-school classics made back in the day, but the fact is, I wasn’t even alive then, much less tasting and judging wines. My assessment of this bottle is therefore limited to my understanding of traditional production methods in the northern Rhône and my experience tasting wines made via such methods. Barruol’s La Pierrelle checks all the boxes...