Final blend decided for our 2012 red wines!

We finalised the blending of our 2012 reds! Exciting products to come in 2014 !

Yesterday was big decision day - we finalised the blending of the 2012 red wines in tank and barrel! The team spent a morning with our consulting œnologue Erwan Guével from Natoli & Cœ, trying varying combinations of tank and barrel aged wines from different plots of vines and, in the case of the barrel aged wines, barrels from different French forests and of different ages (first fill to fourth fill). The results were really exciting and we are delighted with the final 2012 reds. For this year, we wanted to make three distinct red wines:

• A quality approachable red wine to be labelled as the 2012 Tradition

• A reserve wine to justify being classified as Le Gentleman 2012

• A limited edition, special wine, Cuvée Bélénos, which we would issue for the 2012 vintage but might not make in other years.

The 2012 red Tradition will be a fruit-driven, balanced wine with higher freshness than 2011. Definitely hits the spot.

The 2012 Le Gentleman is very comparable to 2011’s, with the benefit of “sweet” but concentrated old Grenache vines and notes of spice from the Mourvèdre and other old vines. Fully dry, rich and complex.

The 2012 Cuvée Bélénos is an elegant, wood-influenced wine, with spicy notes and a touch of vanilla. The wine will evolve in the bottle, but already has complexity and a long finish.

2012 looks like having been a really good vintage for us. We look forward to releasing those new products during 2014. More news to come soon! Follow us on Twitter and Facebook for more updates.