Grenache / Mouvedre / Syrah / Carignan
Laurent Charvin runs this small family estate located in the north of Chateauneuf-du-Pape. The Domaine has small vineyard holdings of just 8 hectares in Chateauneuf-du-Pape and 13 hectares in Cotes du Rhone. They are best known for their Chateauneuf du Papes, however, their Le Putet Cote Du Rhone is always regarded as one of the better wines from this region. Helping this is the age of the vineyards, 40-90 years old. Laurent Charvin describes his vineyard sites as being cool, as their vines are mostly planted on sandy north-facing slopes. This adds to the overall elegance and medium bodied nature of the wines.
They always aim to produce finely styled Grenache-based wines showing great depth and finesse (approximately 80% Grenache with small amounts of Mourvedre, Syrah and Carignan) Winemaking is very traditional with no de-stemming and all aging is done in cement tanks. No wood is used for the maturation of the wine.
This all results in a very floral perfumed wine that is just a joy to drink. It is not big, but it offers so much complexity and flavour. Think lots of blackberry fruits, garrigue (lavender/ rosemary), white pepper and sappy herbs. It is medium bodied but very polished and elegant and it has this amazing length. You don’t need to be big to make a huge impression and this wine is a great example.