$42.99 on 6+ Gramenon (Code: 6saves2)

95 pts Decanter
Barrel sample, so a provisional score. This is darkly coloured for a pure Grenache. Damson and black cherry fruit, and a touch earthy. It’s concentrated, mouthcoating, silky, pure and juicy. The structure is remarkably intense – the acidity and the bold (if not tight) tannic frame. There’s a touch of looseness to the tannins, in a positive sense. It's an impressive wine with great length and it will age very well. The alcohol is generous but not excessive for a pure Grenache. From 45- to 80-year-old vines, 100% whole bunches; lightly crushed, 15-20 days maceration, only pumpovers, no punching down, temperature controlled, matured in demi-muids and some concrete eggs for 12 months. To be revisited in bottle before any definitive conclusions can be made on the final wine.

JLL ****(*) dark robe; the nose is promising, black fruit gums, a discreet aroma, is oily, nicely grapey, a serene and stylish opening. The palate is also stylish from the off, holds suave content, bears sève [sap] from the old vines and good gras, extends with notably fine powder-sand tannins, is well orchestrated, up there on quality, is very good, top tack. From mid 2024 to 2034-36. Feb 2024

100% Grenache (1950s-1970s, 2010s massale cuttings from 1910s Grenache) on Gobelet and wire training, from 3 plots at Gramenon behind the house - very limestone with clay, clay-limestone, sand, “our plus beau terroir,” Michèle A-L, 50-80% destemmed, 3 week vinification, pumping overs, 1 or 2 cap punchings, sometimes 1 x part vat emptying/refilling at end (2023), 20-25 mg SO2 applied after malo, aged 15% 18 hl egg (since 2018), 85% 8-12 year 600-litre oak casks 12 months (before late 2010s aged 4-10 year 228 & 225-litre oak casks 12 months, until late 2000s was aged 50% concrete vat, 50% 5-10 year 228 & 225-litre oak casks 8 months), unfined, unfiltered

Kermit Lynch: The seemingly reserved façade of Michèle Aubèry-Laurent melts away quickly when she speaks about her wines. As a former nurse (who often favored natural remedies), she has come to treat her vines with the same care, conviction, and passion as she had for her former patients. She and her husband, Philippe, bottled their first vintage of Domaine Gramenon in 1990, in the far northern-eastern stretches of the southern Rhône, in the town of Montbrison-sur-Lez. Philippe was a talented vigneron—both creative and edgy—and he loved to push the envelope of the regulations. In 1999, in an unexpected twist of fate, he was killed in a tragic accident. Michèle was suddenly left on her own with their three children, vineyards, and a winery to deal with. Crushed but undaunted, Michèle stepped to the forefront, boldly picking up where Philippe left off. Over the years, Michèle has discovered her own creative voice in her new vocation; in so doing she has catapulted Domaine Gramenon into cult wine status. Today, she works twenty-six hectares with her talented son, Maxime François (a rising star in his own right), farming both young and very old vines alike. They employ organic and biodynamic practices in the vineyards, with a strong non-interventionist stance in the cellars.