We are delighted that five of our producers were ranked in The Wine Specatotors top 100. Two of the standout wines with top scores.
Moulin-a-vent Domaine La Tour du Bief from Vincent Girardin scored 92 points.
Vincent Girardin acquired the La Tour du Bief estate in September, 2010. Established in the Middle Ages in the village of Chénas, it covers 20 hectares and includes the most prestigious parcels of the Moulin à Vent appellation.
Girardin's goal is to continue the tradition of the production of great Moulin-à-Vent wines that, in the last century, competed with the great villages of the Côte de Nuits. With their structure and complexity linked to a potentially important capacity for ageing, wines from Moulin-à-Vent were were said to "pinotent", meaning getting closer to their Burgundian (Pinot) neighbours by evoking aromas of cherry, matured fruits, spices and truffle.
This wine is produced from parcels located in the "lieux-dit" La Tour du Bief, which surround the estate. This area has one of the most singular soils of the appellation - under the granitic rock, there is limestone and clay, which bring roundness and depth to the wine. Winemaking is traditional, followed by ageing partly in wood foudres of 50hl and then in Burgundian barrels of 228 liters. Wines are neither fined nor filtered in order to give them as much complexity and life as possible.
92 points, Wine Spectator: "Lush fruit flavors of blackberry and blueberry mix with a core of spice and dried herb notes in this fresh red, which is silky, with lightly chewy tannins, followed by lingering hints of dark chocolate and cardamom on the finish. Drink now through 2016." (Wine Spectator, 30 Apr 2011).
Domaine La Monardiere Vacqueyras Les 2 Monardes scored 93 points.
At La Monardiere Martine and Christian Vache strive to produce expressive, full-bodied wines that reflect their terroir. Their very old vines are carefully maintained and their approach is based on natural cultivation with as little intervention as possible. Les Deux Monardes is produced from 40-year-old Grenache and Syrah grapes grown on a soil of chalky grit and sandy clay. After fermentation with natural yeasts the wine spends a year ageing gracefully in tank and barrel before bottling without filtering or fining. From the fabulous 2009 Rhone vintage, this superb wine will drink well over the next 4 to 5 years.
