Michel Chavarin Cairanne “Les Garrigues”s (Organic) 2018 - Rhone Valley, France

90/100 Jeb Dunnuck

Jeb Dunnuck "Coming from the red clay soils of the Les Garrigues lieu-dit, the 2016 Cairanne was aged all in concrete tanks. It has a lovely perfume of seet cherries and raspberry fruits, lavender, pepper and earthly garrigue and it's medium-bodied, rounded and incredibly charming on the palate. Drink this forward, fleshy pleasure bent beauty anytime over the coming 4-5 years." (2016 Vintage)

Clos des Centenaires was founded Luc Baudet of Chateau Mas-Neuf fame, and Californian wine industry veteran, Jack Edwards who both share a passion for artisan wines and the terroir of France’s Southern Rhone.

Clos des Centenaires is a historic vineyard situated in Costieres de Nimes, close to the Mediterranean Sea. The vineyard boasts 70-year-old Grenache vines which are deeply rooted in the pebble stones overlooking the picturesque lakes of Petite Camargue. The vineyard also features Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Verdot, and Cinsault, and is known for producing unique, high-end, elegant wines of excellent value.

The vineyard soils are cultivated amongst natural grassland using shallow tillage methods and special attention is paid to the revitalization of vines (using annually prepared biodynamic compost). Inputs are limited to organically approved natural products.

The Rhone Valley is one of France's key wine regions and is divided neatly by a gap of about 25 miles (40km). Wines from the northern part of the valley tend to be Syrah-dominant (Hermitage and Cote Rotie being the most notable examples), while wines from the southern Rhone are more commonly blends, with Grenache playing a more dominant role. Chateauneuf-du-Pape is the most famous example of a southern Rhone blend, but similar blends are found in wines from Gigondas, Vacqueyras, and the regional Cotes du Rhone title.

Initially part of the Côtes-du-Rhône Villages AOC, Cairanne vineyards produced some of the best grapes and wines in the region. It is due to this supremacy that most of the Cairanne vineyards have been provisionally elevated to AOC status in February 2016, and definitively given the AOC status in 2018. Today, Cairanne red wines are known for being full-bodied, fruity, spicy with a smooth finish.

Southern Rhone Red Blend refers to a wide range of grape varieties often blended together to make wines in the southern reaches of the Rhone Valley in the south of France. While the blend could theoretically consist of any of a wide range of grape varieties, it is usually made up of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre, in varying proportions, typically with Grenache and Syrah as the dominant partners.