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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Drinking window: Drink between 2025 and 2029 (based on 78 user opinions) |
| Community Tasting History |
| Domaine les Grands Bois Producer website
Marc Besnardeau is from Paris originally and before he met Mireille Farjon, he was a sommelier at one of the better restaurants in Paris (in the Montmartre section). In marrying her he not only moved, but also made the complete change from the city life to the life of a vigneron. His fine palate as a sommelier, however, put him in good stead for evaluating wine and making his own. He knew, for example, that when he bought wines, to look for those with low yields and concentration and sought out the examples that were bottled unfiltered. He now has the opportunity to put these views into practice. The domaine that Marc Besnardeau has taken over is very well situated between St. Cecile and Cairanne. From these vines he produces several cuvees. The Cotes du Rhone that we get from him is our selection, about two-thirds Grenache, one-third Syrah, though this varies slightly form vintage to vintage, but is always bottled unfiltered. The Cotes du Rhone Villages cuvee we generally favor is Cuvee Gabrielle named after one of their three daughters. This cuvee is about half Grenache the balance principally Syrah and Mourvedre and is aged for a short time in barrique. Marc also has recently acquired a parcel in Cairanne that is a great example of one of the best value appellations in France. All of his wines are deeply colored, ripe, robust and while one can think of many flavors to describe them, the word delicious pretty much says it all.Red Rhone Blend Read about the different grapes used to produce red and white Rhone wines
On CellarTracker, Red Rhone Blend is the term for a wine consisting of two or more of the traditional 13 Southern Rhone grape varieties. Typically it's the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre or Cinsault grapes, but can also contain the Muscardin, Counoise, Clairette, Bourboulenc, Picpoul, Roussanne, Terret Noir, Picardan or Vaccarese grapes.
A 'food' wine. Lacking pretension and intended for local consumption with local cuisine. Lacks the 'high' notes on a Bordeaux, more earthy and sharper so often a better partner to meat dishes with a sauce. France Vins de France (Office National Interprofessionnel des Vins ) | Pages Vins, Directory of French Winegrowers | French Wine (Wikipedia)
Wine Scholar Guild vintage ratings
2018 vintage: "marked by a wet spring, a superb summer and a good harvest"
2019 vintage reports
2021: "From a general standpoint, whether for white, rosé or red wines, 2021 is a year marked by quality in the Rhône Valley Vineyards. Structured, elegant, fresh and fruity will be the main keywords for this new vintage."
2022 harvest: idealwine.info | wine-searcher.comRhône Guide to the wines, wineries and appellations in the Rhone Valley The Rhône Valley/Le Vins de la Vallée du Rhône (Comité Interprofession des vins AOC Côtes et vallée du Rhône)
### Wine Scholar Guild's Rhône valley vintage charts & ratings ###Southern Rhône Guide to the wines, wineries and appellations in the Southern Rhone Valley
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