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2010 Les Baux de Provence Rouge “Cornaline”
Domaine HauvetteThe village of Les Baux rests precariously at the summit of the Alpilles mountain range, a striking block of white limestone that juts toward the skies just outside the Provençal city of Arles. The eponymous wine appellation embodies eight villages surrounding the mountains, and its vineyards have the distinction of being 100% organically farmed. Dominique Hauvette founded her estate in the mid-1980s after quitting her job as a lawyer in Savoie, and she now farms seventeen hectares, all biodynamically. Her top cuvée is Cornaline, a blend of Grenache, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon from very rocky soils at the foot of the Alpilles. Fermented naturally and raised in foudres, this powerful red expresses all the wild beauty of the region: herbs, black fruit, savory spices, and an almost animal note that begs for a leg of roast lamb. A wine of considerable density, this 2010 is also a great candidate for the cellar.
—Anthony Lynch
Wine Type: | red |
Vintage: | 2010 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | 50% Grenache, 30% Syrah, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon |
Appellation: | Baux de Provence |
Country: | France |
Region: | Provence |
Producer: | Domaine Hauvette |
Winemaker: | Dominique Hauvette |
Vineyard: | 40 years average, 2 ha |
Soil: | Clay, Limestone |
Aging: | Wine is raised in foudre |
Farming: | Biodynamic (practicing) |
Alcohol: | 14% |
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About The Producer
Domaine Hauvette
Not far from Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, a tourist town known for Roman ruins and as the place where Van Gogh painted “The Starry Night,” you’ll find Domaine Hauvette. Nestled among the foothills of Les Alpilles, the vines are surrounded by a rocky and wild landscape—the clay and limestone soil retains moisture for the arid summer months, the Mistral blows half the year, and <em>garrigue</em> is seemingly everywhere. It is here that in the early 1980s Dominique Hauvette, seeking more sunshine, left her job as a lawyer in the Savoie, re-discovered her passion for raising horses, and began studying oenology. Thirty-some years later and Dominique now has 17 hectares of vines and an international reputation for making benchmark natural wines.
About The Region
Provence
Perhaps there is no region more closely aligned with the history to Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant than Provence. Provence is where Richard Olney, an American ex-pat and friend of Alice Waters, lived, and introduced Kermit to the great producers of Provence, most importantly Domaine Tempier of Bandol. Kermit also spends upwards of half his year at his home in a small town just outside of Bandol.
Vitis vinifera first arrived in France via Provence, landing in the modern day port city of Marseille in the 6th century BC. The influence of terroir on Provençal wines goes well beyond soil types. The herbs from the pervasive scrubland, often referred to as garrigue, as well as the mistral—a cold, drying wind from the northwest that helps keep the vines free of disease—play a significant role in the final quality of the grapes. Two more elements—the seemingly ever-present sun and cooling saline breezes from the Mediterranean—lend their hand in creating a long growing season that result in grapes that are ripe but with good acidity.
Rosé is arguably the most well known type of wine from Provence, but the red wines, particularly from Bandol, possess a great depth of character and ability to age. The white wines of Cassis and Bandol offer complexity and ideal pairings for the sea-influenced cuisine. Mourvèdre reigns king for red grapes, and similar to the Languedoc and Rhône, Grenache, Cinsault, Marsanne, Clairette, Rolle, Ugni Blanc among many other grape varieties are planted.
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2020 Cassis Blanc “Bel-Arme”
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Where the newsletter started
Where the newsletter started
Every three or four months I would send my clients a cheaply made list of my inventory, but it began to dawn on me that business did not pick up afterwards. It occurred to me that my clientele might not know what Château Grillet is, either. One month in 1974 I had an especially esoteric collection of wines arriving, so I decided to put a short explanation about each wine into my price list, to try and let my clients know what to expect when they uncorked a bottle. The day after I mailed that brochure, people showed up at the shop, and that is how these little propaganda pieces for fine wine were born.—Kermit Lynch