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Soaring Grenache from Domaine Gramenon
Soaring Grenache from Domaine Gramenon
by Tom Wolf by Tom Wolf
2021 Côtes-du-Rhône “Poignée de Raisins”
2021 Côtes-du-Rhône “Poignée de Raisins”
Michèle Aubéry-Laurent
Maxime François Laurent
Domaine Gramenon France | Southern Rhône | Côtes-du-Rhône
Few grape varieties are more earthbound than Grenache. Wines made from this star of southern France often taste stony, full of garrigue, and, well, earthy. So it is something of a miracle that Domaine Gramenon has crafted a cuvée that proudly retains that essence of Grenache yet is still so ethereal. Largely due to this kind of paradoxical magic, Michèle Aubéry-Laurent and her son Maxime are among the most respected vignerons not only of the southern Rhône, where they produce roughly twenty distinct bottlings, but in all of France.
They grow Grenache and Syrah, among several other regional varieties, but instead of making rich, robust wines—which is easy to do in these parts—their reds tend to sit at the more lively, exuberant end of the spectrum. Chalk this up to their devotion to biodynamic and organic farming as well as their more “natural” winemaking practices in the cellar. This Poignée de Raisins—“handful of grapes”—accomplishes the elusive feat of boasting both soul and a soaring joie de vivre. It doesn’t get much more perfect than that.
Michèle Aubéry-Laurent
Maxime François Laurent
| Wine Type: | red |
| Vintage: | 2021 |
| 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: | 4-30 Years |
| Soil: | Clay, Limestone varied with gravel, galets roulés, and/or sand |
| Farming: | Biodynamic (certified) |
| Alcohol: | 14% |
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About The Producer
Domaine Gramenon
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Kermit once said...
Kermit once said...
I want you to realize once and for all: Even the winemaker does not know what aging is going to do to a new vintage; Robert Parker does not know; I do not know. We all make educated (hopefully) guesses about what the future will bring, but guesses they are. And one of the pleasures of a wine cellar is the opportunity it provides for you to witness the evolution of your various selections. 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.
Inspiring Thirst, page 171