This impressive wine is sometimes described as a ‘mini Châteauneuf-du-Pape” but it’s much better than that. In fact, it’s superior to many supermarket CNDPs and cheaper, too. Made by the Perrin family who own Château de Beaucastel, it’s a poised, scented, integrated cuvée of mostly Grenache with 15% each of Syrah and Mourvèdre, with fine red berry fruit, a dusting of Mediterranean herbs, understated wood and a refreshing, medium-bodied finish.
Country: France
The Languedoc: an embarrassment of riches
by Simon Field MW
Château de Jonquières is located just to the north of Montpellier, its slate turrets and honey stone quietly distinguished, history writ large in its cobbles and flagstones. An ancient archway...
The Taste of Smoke
by Harry Eyres
I write in a time of ashes. Not only have certain political dreams and projects recently gone up in smoke; the destructive fires have been raging more literally, all across...
What makes a wine taste expensive?
by Margaret Rand
It happened at a Berry Bros tasting, down in the cellars where the floors are so uneven that they give you the impression you’ve absorbed a lot more alcohol than...
Farewell to a great Burgundian
by Tim Atkin
Some wine personalities take their final bow in front of cathedrals full of mourners; others disappear without fanfare or warm words. William Fèvre, one of the great figures of Burgundy,...
Misunderstood Wines
by Chris Wilson
There are certain rights-of-passage conversations that take place as we make our journeys in life. Which football team do you support? Where did you grow up? What was your first...
Why consumers like Chenin Blanc more than Riesling
by Tim Atkin
Where was the Riesling? Johann de Wet shrugged sheepishly and said he’d brought five Robertson Chardonnays to taste instead. “We only make 6,000 bottles of Riesling these days,” he admitted....
2015 Domaine Saint Amant, Beaumes-de-Venise Grangeneuve, Rhône Valley
( £15.99, 14.5%, Waitrose )Beaumes de Venise is still more famous for its fortified Muscats, but canny buyers have always known that if you pick the right wine, the appellation can offer red wines that rival top Châteauneuf-du-Pape at half the price or less. This cuvée of Grenache with 30% Syrah and 10% each of Carignan and Viognier comes from a 50-year-old parcel at 500 metres above the village of Suzette and is wonderfully dense, rich and savoury, showing considerable concentration and weight, flavours of garrigue, black plum and violet and a full-bodied finish. It’s certainly drinkable now, but will reward further cellaring.
When is a rosé not a rosé?
by Matt Walls
Among the first five wine appellations ever to be minted in France were two of the finest terroirs of the Rhône: Châteauneuf-du-Pape and Tavel. Fast forward 83 years and Châteauneuf...
2017 Domaine Cady Cheninsolite, Anjou, Loire Valley
( £13.99, 14%, Waitrose )The kind of thing that wouldn’t look out of place in a line up of New Wave South African Chenin Blancs, this superb organic Loire Valley example from Alexandre Cady has a winning combination of richness, lees-derived complexity, subtle 30% new oak and thrilling acidity. Flavours of pear, apple and quince combine beautifully on the palate with undertones of baking spices and a long, refreshing finish.
Grenache’s true moment in the sun
by Miquel Hudin
Grenache a Go-Go To fill your need for random fact intake, I’d like to inform you that Perpignan, France was the 13th century capital of the Kingdom of Mallorca. For...
The Ghosts of Wine
by Christina Rasmussen
“If only there could be an invention that bottled up a memory, like scent. And it never faded, and it never got stale. And then, when one wanted it, the...