The wine region of Tavel is located in the region of Rhône méridional of Rhone Valley of France. Wineries and vineyards like the Domaine L'Anglore - Eric Pfifferling or the Domaine de la Mordoree produce mainly wines pink, red and white. The most planted grape varieties in the region of Tavel are Mourvèdre, Clairette and Bourboulenc, they are then used in wines in blends or as a single variety. On the nose of Tavel often reveals types of flavors of cream, stone fruit or almonds and sometimes also flavors of mint, smoke or oaky.
In the mouth of Tavel is a powerful with a nice freshness. We currently count 112 estates and châteaux in the of Tavel, producing 189 different wines in conventional, organic and biodynamic agriculture. The wines of Tavel go well with generally quite well with dishes of pork, rich fish (salmon, tuna etc) or shellfish.
Onwards, upwards. The roads get narrower, the corners get tighter. I step out of the car when I finally reach the winery and the air is so much fresher here. I go to take a sip from my water bottle and a gust of wind makes it whistle. I stand with Thomas Jullien and we look over the vineyards. It’s not yet spring, and the vines look little more than sticks. ‘It’s a lunar landscape at the moment,’ he says, as a friend’s flock of 300 sheep has just passed through to graze on every scrap of green b ...
When asked which is the most exciting appellation in the Rhône, there’s one that currently springs to mind before all others: Tavel. I have to be honest with you: I don’t buy much rosé. So, given that Tavel is, according to The Oxford Companion to Wine, ‘one of France’s few all-rosé appellations,’ my response might be unexpected. The Oxford Companion is technically correct, of course – the wines made here are paler than a typical red wine. But compared to other rosés, that’s where the comparison ...
Some Cornas estates, like Domaine Clape, feel as ancient and unchanging as the granite hills themselves. Others, like Domaine Alain Voge, go through periods of flux. When this is due to vineyards being ripped out, bought or sold, then the whole profile of an estate can be altered. That’s not the case at Voge. Instead, it’s due to the coming and going of people and the unavoidable change that entails. I visited Lionel Fraisse, the current managing director at Domaine Alain Voge, to taste a select ...
