Domaine de la Tour du Bon - En Sol 2017
17/20
Bettane & Desseauve
16,5/20 Coup de Coeur
RVF
"One of the most distinctive Mourvèdre wines in the region"
“Winemaking in amphorae has tamed the Mourvèdre’s fiery spirit, allowing it to purr in the glass without losing any of its assertive character. Velvety tannins, a fine, tight texture, and lovely freshness, all accompanied by a lovely expression of black fruit, aromatic herbs, blackcurrant, blueberry, bramble, and garrigue flowers. It’s beautiful, genuine, and you can’t help but fall under its spell.”(The Bettane & Desseauve Wine Guide)
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Nose
Expressive notes of jammy fruit (blackcurrant, blueberry), with floral and garrigue notes
Palate
Round and full-bodied, juicy, with refined yet elegant tannins—what energy!
Serve
At 16-18°C
Open
1 hour beforehand in a carafe
Drink before
2028
Food and Wine Pairings
Enjoy it with stew, game, duck with red berries, rack of lamb with herbs, or squab with truffles …
Bettane & Desseauve
Wine rated 17/20 (Benchmark wine)
Rated estate (2024 guide): 3*Stars (High-quality production that serves as a benchmark in its sector)
About the wine:
Winemaking in amphorae has tamed the Mourvèdre’s fiery spirit, allowing it to purr in the glass without losing any of its assertive character. Velvety tannins, a fine, tight texture, and lovely freshness, all accompanied by a delightful expression of black fruit, aromatic herbs, blackcurrant, blueberry, bramble, and garrigue flowers. It’s beautiful, genuine, and utterly charming.
About the estate:
Agnès Hocquard-Henry runs her estate with the philosophy of producing less but better. On her 14 hectares, she produces elegant wines that reflect the terroir, sometimes venturing off the beaten path to create original micro-cuvées. The reds, rosés, and whites are beautifully crafted, but the most surprising is the “en-sol” cuvée, produced in minuscule quantities with Elisabetta Foradori, the leading authority on amphora wines in Italy. Here, the Mourvèdre expresses a surprising suppleness and finesse—vibrant and stripped of all artifice. We loved it!
RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France
Wine rated (2020 guide) 16.5/20 Top Pick
Rated Estate (2024 Guide) 2*Stars (These exceptional estates, often boasting fabulous terroirs, are must-haves that, thanks to the consistency and excellence of their wines, deserve a place in the cellars of discerning wine lovers)
About the wine:
One of the most original Mourvèdre wines in the region. The grapes were destemmed and macerated for six months in amphorae, resulting in a still-subtle floral bouquet and gently extracted flavors. A rugged, lively texture gives it plenty of personality and a surprising sensation of fresh grapes.
About the estate:
The Hocquard family has been at the helm of this estate since 1968. In Le Castellet, La Tour du Bon benefits from a unique terroir of limestone and sandy soils with varied exposures, making it one of the earliest-ripening wines in Bandol. As early as the mid-1980s, the estate began to make a name for itself, notably with the creation in 1987 of the Saint-Ferréol cuvée—a sunny, refined red wine sourced from three plots planted around a hill that is twenty million years old. Then, starting in 1990, with the arrival of Agnès Henry-Hocquard at the helm of the estate, the wine reached new heights! Surrounded by winemakers from the Loire Valley (Thierry Puzelat and Antoine Pouponeau), she has successfully maintained a commitment to excellence, producing wines that retain great character and age harmoniously with a delicate profile, without ever becoming overly ripe, over-extracted, or over-aged. Since 2013, this curious winemaker has been setting aside Mourvèdre grapes for the En Sol cuvée, which is macerated for six months in amphorae. This ancestral yet perilous practice—where wines can become heavy and lack precision—is magnificently mastered in a refined red with a rare iodine-like quality.
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