NAME OF WINE: Cotes du Rhone Rouge

NAME OF ESTATE/DOMAINE: Domaine de Chapoton

VINTAGE: 2017

ABV: 13.5%

NAME OF VIGNERON: Annika and Serge REMUSAN

LOCATION (village and region): North east of ancient Roman city of Orange is the village of Chapoton on the D8 connecting Bolene and Carpentras.

GRAPE/BLEND: Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre and Carignan

ALLERGENS (EGGS AND/OR MILK): NONE

TASTING NOTE: Aromas of violets and soft black fruits dominate and silky ripe tannins lubricate the transition in the mouth. Low yields (less than 40 hl/ha) give the wines their sturdy yet elegant structure.

(LOCAL) FOOD RECOMMENDATION: Lamb flavoured with thyme, chicken cooked with a salt crust, grilled aubergines with tomatoes

SHORT HISTORY: The history of the estate goes back to the reign of Louis XIV, where traces of the first exploitation of land in the XVII century can be found. Passionate about the vine and wine, Annika and Serge took over the family farm in 1981.

(MICRO)CLIMATE: All the vineyards benefit from an exceptional amount of sunshine as well as a strong wind, the Mistral: two beneficial factors for a harvest of good quality.

TERROIR: The soil varies from the summit of the massif, above the village, to the bottom in the valley. The summit at 280 m is covered by flat stones, a stony sand soil with the presence of pink flint. The garrigues at the bottom are red clay, light and permeable with round pebbles. The patches of vineyards are often surrounded by trees to preserve the natural flora.

VITICULTURE: The Syrah, Cinsault, Viognier, Roussanne and Marsanne grape varieties are trellised, which allows the grapes to be aired. The vegetation is trained in summer and certain vines are green harvested.
The very old Grenache vines (planted in 1945) are trained in the gobelet technique. Aiming towards a controlled cultivation with mechanical ploughing of the soil.

YIELDS (hectolitre per hectare): 45 hl/ha
VINIFICATION:

•   Manual harvest with sorting of the grapes

•   In stainless steel vats, 80% de-stemmed, and 20% whole bunches.

•   Temperature control at 25°C,

•   Pumping over during 12- 18 days.