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2015 Alpilles Blanc “Jaspe”

Domaine Hauvette
Discount Eligible $38.00
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Once again, prepare yourself to be wowed. I now have three favorite Roussannes. One is from the Ravaille brothers at Pic Saint Loup (fine, theirs isn’t 100% Roussanne, but who’s counting?). Then there is the Chignin-Bergeron from the Quenard family in the Savoie. Here’s the third. From vines deeply rooted in the garrigue-encrusted, limestone foothills of Les Alpilles, Jaspe is fermented in concrete eggs and aged briefly in stainless steel. A gorgeous perfume of honeysuckle meets the nose, and the wine is at once both lush and nervy, comforting and stimulating. It is picture-perfect with Provençal cuisine, those garlicky, herby, tomato-based dishes that sometimes give white wine a hard time.

Dixon Brooke


Technical Information
Wine Type: white
Vintage: 2015
Bottle Size: 750mL
Blend: Roussanne
Appellation: Baux de Provence
Country: France
Region: Provence
Producer: Domaine Hauvette
Winemaker: Dominique Hauvette
Vineyard: 15 years average, 2 ha
Soil: Clay, Limestone
Farming: Biodynamic (practicing)
Alcohol: 12%

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About The Region

Provence

map of 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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Old wine bottles

Let the brett nerds retire into protective bubbles, and whenever they thirst for wine it can be passed in to them through a sterile filter. Those of us on the outside can continue to enjoy complex, natural, living wines.

Inspiring Thirst, page 236