Domaine de la Charbonniere Vacqueyras

Domaine de la Charbonniere Vacqueyras

WHY WE LOVE IT

  • The Vacqueyras appellation spreads for about 3,200 acres on two towns: Vacqueyras and Sarrians. This wine comes from two parcels and lieux dits “Pavane” and “La Verde” situated on Plateau des “Garrigues” in Sarrians.
  • The blend of Grenache and Syrah is the signature of the great wines of the South Rhône Valley.
  • The soil is essentially composed of red chalky calcareous soils with smooth stones. This geologic particularity is conductive to low yields allowing grapes to reach a high color, tannin and aromatic concentration.

Varietal Composition: 60% Grenache, 40% Syrah

Elaboration: Enormous care is taken at harvest time. It is done in a traditional method: hand-picked harvest with a selective sorting of grapes in the vineyard and at the cellar (by using a sorting table), which are proofs of quality. Fruit is desteemed and fermented in conical wood vat and stainless steel vats. The alcoholic fermentation lasts 3 to 4 weeks with different operations : A release, punching of the cap and pumping over. The malolactic fermentation is made in demi-muids and oak vats. Elevage is done in conical wood vat, stainless steels vats with a mix of demi-muid and some barrels for aging.

Tasting Notes: Opulent notes of dark cherries, raspberries, and dried herbs . The mouth is utterly elegant with beautiful length driven by black berries and licorice.

PRESS

2015 – 90 James Suckling | 91 Wine Advocate | 91 Jeb Dunnuck | 92 Vinous

2016 – 90-92 Wine Advocate | 89-91 Jeb Dunnuck | 91 Wine Spectator | 92 Vinous

2017 – 91 James Suckling | 91-92 Vinous | 91-93 Wine Advocate | 92 Wine Spectator | 92 Jeb Dunnuck

2019 – 92 Jeb Dunnuck | 92 James Suckling

2020 – 91-93 Jeb Dunnuck | 92 Wine Spectator

2021 – 93 James Suckling

PRODUCER BACKGROUND

Domaine de la Charbonnière has been the singular passion of the Maret family since their purchase of this iconic property in 1912. The young and charismatic Veronique Maret is responsible for the recent meteoric rise of Charbonnière – Veronique is handling all winemaking and somehow also finding the time to run the Domaine’s sales activities. One of the most important changes Veronique made since taking over in 2012 was the move to organic viticulture. Organic farming really started to make its mark on the finished wines in 2014 and the press we’ve been seeing from that point on only validates our opinion on that front. Domaine de la Charbonnière’s holdings spread over 68 acres in some of the region’s most sought after lieu dits – 49 of these in Châteauneuf du Pape, 15 in Vacqueyras, 4 in Côtes du Rhône. Winemaking is traditional with a profound respect for grapes and terroir. Reds are fermented in conical wood vats, and aged in a mix of demi muids and barrels. While the majority of our Charbonniere references are red, Insiders have long sought out the property’s white wine offerings, which we make available to you with wide grins on our faces. These are all tactile wines that combine elegance and serious depth at once.

Print review Shelf Talker (2016 – 90-92 Wine Advocate)
Print review Shelf Talker (2017 – 91-93 Wine Advocate)
Print review Shelf Talker (2017 – 92 Jeb Dunnuck)
Print review Shelf Talker (2019 – 92 Wine Spectator)
Print review Shelf Talker (2020 – 92 Wine Spectator)
Print review Shelf Talker (2021 – 93 Wine Spectator)