The Winery Comte de Lauze of Rhône méridional of Rhone Valley

Guigal has acquired Château d’Aqueria for an undisclosed fee in a deal that adds to a sense of fresh dynamism in the historic vineyards of Tavel, a rosé-only appellation that lies on the west bank of the Rhône river in southern France. Marcel Guigal, son of Guigal domaine founder Etienne, said, ‘Our family is delighted to join the Tavel appellation and to participate in the promotion of this great gastronomic rosé.’ Château d’Aqueria. Photo credit: Courtesy of E. Guigal. The purchase puts ...

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 ...

Whenever I visit Domaine Richaud, just outside the village of Cairanne, the winemaking team remind me of friends I made at free parties in the 1990s in fields and disused warehouses. I’m not talking dreadlocks and dogs on strings, but there’s always an anarchic frisson in the air. You get the impression they know how to enjoy themselves. Perhaps it’s to be expected, given the radical furrow Marcel Richaud has ploughed. He’s approaching 70 now, but still thrums with pent-up energy, his ice-blue e ...