Wines made from Mourvèdre grapes of Middleburg Virginia

Many wine styles can seem perplexing at first: imagine the first bottle of Barolo if you only know Barossa Shiraz, or the first bottle of Jura Savagnin if you were brought up on California Chardonnay. With time, thought and repeated tasting, though, comes understanding. You learn each wine’s syntax and lexicon, its hints and inferences. You grasp the ways in which each style communicates. Its beauty dawns, then grows. Rosé wine sales grew 23% worldwide between 2002 and 2019. Its fuel has come fr ...

It’s easy to forget that the southern Rhône’s four most prevalent red varieties aren’t indigenous. Grenache, Carignan and Mourvèdre all appear to originate from Spain; Syrah made its way down the river from the northern Rhône. Of the long tail of other grapes, most have their roots closer to home. Plantings have dwindled in recent years, but today local varieties are experiencing renewed interest. One that’s finding a lot of fans – both in the Rhône and further afield – is Counoise. Scroll down ...

It’s 11.00am on a July day and it’s already hot in Gigondas. The cicadas are trilling in the plane trees that shade the village square. A busy day is looming for Alexandre Fréguin but he remains unfazed, looking relaxed in a smart shirt and sandals. Underneath the calm exterior however there’s a single-minded determination that would put the Terminator to shame. At just 34, he’s achieved more than most sommeliers manage in a lifetime. Fréguin oversees the drinks program across the network of res ...