2018 Petit ChablisDomaine Roland Lavantureux
France | Burgundy
$30
Producers
A young-vine Grenache produced naturally and released early, this atypical Côtes-du-Rhône is designed specifically to quench thirst while showcasing the scrumptious flavor of fermented biodynamic grapes. The domaine’s organic approach to viticulture and nonintervention in the cellar may strike some as rebellious, yet the Gramenons humbly point out that “thirty years ago, we called that ‘working normally’!” In a landscape dominated by mass-market, technological Côtes-du-Rhône, however, these wines are anything but normal. Hand-harvesting, native yeast fermentations, élevage without any new oak, and negligible doses of sulfur are just a few of the factors that make Gramenon’s wines alive, expressive, and difficult to stop drinking. Serve this one cool, from a carafe, with a plain old burger—generously seasoned with herbes de Provence.
—Anthony Lynch
Wine Type: | red |
Vintage: | 2019 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Grenache |
Appellation: | Côtes-du-Rhône |
Country: | France |
Region: | Southern Rhône |
Producer: | Domaine Gramenon |
Winemaker: | Michèle Aubèry-Laurent & Maxime François Laurent |
Vineyard: | 5-30 Years |
Soil: | Clay, Limestone varied with gravel, galets roulés, and/or sand |
Aging: | Grapes macerate for 15 days in cement cuve, Wine ages for 12 months in barriques |
Farming: | Organic (practicing) |
Alcohol: | 14.3% |
Domaine Gramenon France | Southern Rhône | Côtes-du-Rhône
Domaine Gramenon France | Southern Rhône | Côtes-du-Rhône
Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe France | Southern Rhône | Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Domaine de Durban France | Southern Rhône
Château de Trinquevedel France | Southern Rhône | Tavel
Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe France | Southern Rhône | Châteauneuf-du-Pape
The southern Rhône valley is Grenache country. It’s also known for its stones. With a viticulture history dating back well before the Popes arrived in the 12th century and one of France’s oldest appellations d'origine contrôlée, Châteauneuf-du-Pâpe, the southern Rhône is unquestionably one of France’s best known and premier winegrowing regions. The wines have the pedigree and age-worthiness of Burgundy and Bordeaux, but with a rustic, Mediterranean character. Like most wines from southern France, the reds, whites, and rosés are blends. Filling out the Grenache for the reds and rosés, you’ll often find Syrah, Carignan, Mourvèdre, and Cinsault. The common white grape varieties are Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Bourboulenc, Viognier, Roussane, and Marsanne among others. From the alluvial riverbed stones found in Lirac, Tavel, and Châteauneuf to the limestone cliffs of the Dentelles de Montmirail that influence Beaumes-de-Venise (where you’ll find excellent Muscat), Vacqueyras, and Gigondas, great terroir abounds.
Kermit’s entrance in the region came in the mid 1970s on his first trip with Richard Olney, an American ex-pat and friend of Alice Waters. On that trip, Richard introduced Kermit to the Brunier family of Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe. Soon after, Kermit began importing the Brunier’s wines—their Châteauneuf-du-Pape “La Crau” bottling remains a staple of our portfolio today. In the late 1990s Kermit teamed up with the Brunier family to purchase the famed Gigondas estate, Domaine Les Pallières. More than 40 years later, we now import wines from fifteen southern Rhône domaines spanning the entire area of the region.
Domaine Gallety France | Southern Rhône | Côtes du Vivarais
Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe France | Southern Rhône | Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Domaine Les Pallières France | Southern Rhône | Gigondas
Domaine Le Sang des Cailloux France | Southern Rhône | Vacqueyras
Selected by Kermit Lynch France | Southern Rhône | Côtes du Rhône
Domaine de Durban France | Southern Rhône | Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise
Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe France | Southern Rhône | Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Domaine Les Pallières France | Southern Rhône | Gigondas
Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe France | Southern Rhône | Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe France | Southern Rhône | Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe France | Southern Rhône | Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Château de Trinquevedel France | Southern Rhône | Tavel
Living wines have ups and downs just as people do, periods of glory and dog days, too. If wine did not remind me of real life, I would not care about it so much.
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