Tasting Notes: Xavier’s Côtes du Rhône Rosé was made by pressurage direct of old-vine grapes that come from clay-limestone hillsides in the Vaucluse and northern Gard regions, in the foothills o... f the Rhône. In the glass, the wine has a limpid, inviting salmon pink color, with flashes of white gold at the edge. Aromas of sun-warmed wild strawberries, white peaches, fresh peonies, and red hibiscus move in and out of the foreground (not too, too cold, please), adding fleeting suggestions of ripe honeydew, rose petals, and rhubarb as the nose develops in the glass. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied, generous, and vibrant, with layers of mineral-infused red berry flavors that echo the nose, sometimes suggesting ripe Rainer cherries, red raspberries, and currants, all delicately seasoned with nutmeg, pink sea salt, and the cinnamon-like side of fresh green perilla. Drink now with any dish you can imagine – or by itself with nothing at all–until next spring, when if all goes well, the 2024 vintage is sure to arrive. Read More
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As the technical director and head enologist at “Laboratoire Avignon Oenologie Conseil,” Xavier Vignon is the consulting winemaker at more than 300 estates, including most of the best-known domaines in Châteauneuf-du-Pape. In lieu of payment for his laboratory’s service, he sometimes accepts wine, which the micro-négociant company he established in 2002, “Xavier Vins,” uses to produce exceptional wines of the southern Rhône Valley. Originally a physical chemist, Xavier is particularly interested in how the spectrum of dissolved mineral salts in the groundwater of each vineyard, which varies from parcel to parcel, influences the expression of terroir in the grapes. “I’m a trained enologist,” he says. “I’ve examined wine down to the molecular level. Which, in the end, convinces me that what is most important are the vines, the depth of the roots, and the health and balance of the vineyard.”
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Phocaean Greeks established viticulture in the Rhône as far back as 600 BC, but until the 14th century the wines were not seen outside the region. The establishment of the Avignonese Papacy (1305-1377) brought fame to the region's wine - so much so that their Burgundian neighbors to the north banned wines from the Rhône in 1446, a measure that effectively cut off trade with England and other Northern European markets for over 200 years. Stretching southward from Lyon to Avignon, the Côtes du Rhône produces a wide variety of wines, with the appellations north of Valence producing the least (in volume), and the towns south of Montélimar producing prodigious amounts. As in other regions, the most interesting wines come from small farms. The AOC Côtes-du-Rhône covers the entire Rhône region but is more regularly used in the south where Grenache is the dominant grape.
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A blend of red “Rhône varietals” may include Grenache, Mourvèdre, Carignan, Cinsault, Syrah, and others depending on where the wine is produced, and the quantity of each variety grown in a producer's vineyard. Grapes of the different varieties are blended to develop the best wine in any given vintage, so there is not a standard recipe.
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Grilled shrimp or langoustine, and other olive oil-laced seafoods (and seafood stews!) are recommended for this wine.
