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2021 Bandol Rouge
Domaine de la Tour du BonBandol rouge: that iconic dark, brawny nectar with unmistakable tannic grip. Agnès Henry’s version is trademark Bandol but also a horse of a different color. Her blend includes a little less Mourvèdre and a little more Grenache than may be typical, translating into a softer structure and an almost ethereal weightlessness. The 2021 Tour du Bon rouge, with its juicy nose and bright, crunchy fruit, its mouthwatering acidity and peppery verve, is particularly elegant. We opened it on a perfectly ordinary Sunday evening with a bowl of butternut squash soup and fresh crusty bread. It made our quiet dinner feel like a fête.
—Emily Spillmann
Wine Type: | red |
Vintage: | 2021 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | 55% Mourvèdre, 25% Grenache, 15% Cinsault, 5% Carignan |
Appellation: | Bandol |
Country: | France |
Region: | Provence |
Producer: | Domaine de la Tour du Bon |
Winemaker: | Hocquard-Henry Family |
Vineyard: | 38 year average, 11 ha total |
Soil: | Clay, Limestone, Silt, Sandstone |
Aging: | Wines age in foudres for 18 months before bottling |
Farming: | Organic (practicing) |
Alcohol: | 13.7% |
More from this Producer or Region
2020 Bandol Rouge
France | Provence
The 2020 Tour du Bon rouge, with its juicy nose and bright, crunchy fruit, its mouthwatering acidity and peppery verve, is particularly elegant.
2021 Bandol Rouge“La Migoua”
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At the domaine's highest-elevation site, Mourvèdre's might is gently enveloped by Grenache and Cinsault to yield a Bandol of great finesse.
2022 Alpilles Rouge “Grenache”
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A thoroughbred of pure Grenache, this unbridled rouge is fresh and lithe, teeming with juicy dark fruit and ample goût de terroir.
2023 Bandol Rosé HALF BOTTLE
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Peach-scented Bandol rosé is the bee’s knees on a warm summer afternoon.
2022 Bouches-du-Rhône Blanc “Baume Noire”
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It is a seafood lover’s dream wine.
2019 Bandol Rouge “Saint Ferréol”
France | Provence
Soulful and slightly wild, but beautifully balanced, this rouge has an irresistible notes of garrigue.
2022 Cassis Blanc
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A blend of Ugni blanc, Claudette, Marsanne, and Sauvignon blanc, here is the wine to enhance seafood and shellfish.
2021 Bandol Rouge “Lulu et Lucien”
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As Kermit wrote, “there is always something wild and unpredictable about it, spirited, shall we say, yet it is honest and impeccable, full of warmth and finesse.”
2020 Bandol Rouge “Saint Ferréol”
France | Provence
Soulful and slightly wild, but beautifully balanced, this rouge has an irresistible notes of garrigue.
2023 Bandol Rosé
France | Provence
Experience the delicate side of Bandol—gentle and full of charm, it offers notes of clementine, white peach, and lavender.
About The Producer
Domaine de la Tour du Bon
About The Region
Provence
There is perhaps no region more closely aligned with the history of Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant than Provence. While Kermit began his career as a Burgundy specialist, he soon fell in love with Provence and its wines, notably the legendary Bandols of Domaine Tempier, which he began importing in 1977. He later began living in the area part-time, returning frequently between tasting trips, and today he spends most of his time at his home just outside of Bandol.
Provence is thought to be France’s most ancient wine region, established when Greek settlers landed in the modern-day port city of Marseille in the 6th century BC. The conditions here are ideal for cultivation of the grapevine, with a hot, dry climate and a prevalence of poor, rocky soils, primarily limestone-based, suitable for vines and not much else. The ever-present southern sunshine as well as the mistral, a cold, drying wind from the northwest that helps keep the vines free of disease, are crucial elements of Provençal terroir. Wild herbs from the pervasive scrubland, called garrigue, and cooling saline breezes from the Mediterranean also contribute to the quality and character of wines in all three colors.
Provence is well known for its rosés, but red wines have always held importance here. The very best, such as those from Bandol, possess great depth and a capacity for long-term aging. The white wines, notably those of Cassis, offer weight balanced by a maritime freshness, making them ideal pairings for the local seafood. Mourvèdre reigns king for red grapes, supported mainly by Grenache and Cinsault, while Clairette, Marsanne, Rolle, and Ugni Blanc are the region’s principal white grapes.
More from Provence or France
2022 Bandol Rouge “La Migoua”
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2021 Bandol Rouge “Lulu et Lucien”
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2015 Bandol Rouge
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2023 Bandol Rosé
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2023 Méditerranée Blanc
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2020 Bandol Rouge
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2020 Côtes de Provence Syrah “Les Planches de la Garedivole”
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2016 Bandol Rouge
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2022 Bandol Rouge “La Tourtine”
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2020 Alpilles Rouge “Amethyste”
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2020 Bandol Rouge
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2022 Bandol Rouge “La Migoua”
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2021 Bandol Rouge “Lulu et Lucien”
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2015 Bandol Rouge
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2023 Bandol Rosé
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2022 Bandol Rosé
Domaine de Terrebrune France | Provence
2023 Méditerranée Blanc
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2020 Bandol Rouge
“La Tourtine”
Domaine Tempier France | Provence
2020 Côtes de Provence Syrah “Les Planches de la Garedivole”
Clos Saint-Joseph France | Provence
2016 Bandol Rouge
Domaine de Terrebrune France | Provence
2022 Bandol Rouge “La Tourtine”
Domaine Tempier France | Provence
2020 Alpilles Rouge “Amethyste”
Domaine Hauvette France | Provence
2020 Bandol Rouge
“La Migoua”
Domaine Tempier France | Provence
Kermit once said...
Kermit once said...
For the wines that I buy I insist that the winemaker leave them whole, intact. I go into the cellars now and select specific barrels or cuvées, and I request that they be bottled without stripping them with filters or other devices. This means that many of our wines will arrive with a smudge of sediment and will throw a more important deposit as time goes by, It also means the wine will taste better.