Chateau De La Gardine Rasteau has a beautiful deep garnet colour with purple hues. Notes of blackcurrant, violets, blackberry and liquorice on the nose, with aromas of prunes, dates and leather developing with age. The palate is juicy, generous and framed by elegant and tight tannins. Over time, more complex aromas of cherry clafoutis and kirsch reveal themselves.
- Country: France
- Region: Rhône Valley
- Subregion: Rasteau
- Vintage: 2018
- Colour: Red
- Grape Variety: Grenache/Garnacha, Syrah/Shiraz
- ABV: 15%
- Bottle Size: 75cl
- Closure: Natural cork
- Style: Juicy and generous
- Drink With: Lamb and game dishes or a hearty beef casserole
Château De La Gardine's Rasteau is grown in vineyards with three different soil types, each providing the wine with distinctive characters. The vines range from 40-60 years old and grow on the lower slope on Mont Ventoux where the slightly higher altitude preserves a freshness in the wine. The grapes were hand harvested, sorted and fully destemmed. They were co-fermented before being aged in a mixture of cement and stainless steel vats.
About the grower
The winemaking history of the Brunel family dates back to the 17th century, although it wasn't until 1945 that Gaston Brunel, a famous négociant, acquired the Château De La Gardine in Châteauneuf Du Pape. The estate is now run by his two sons, Patrick and Maxime, with the help of their wives Eve and Maryse and their children Marie-Odile and Philippe and is spread over 52 hectares of vineyards (48ha of red and 4ha of white) and 20 hectares of forests. The estate is famous for both the quality of its wines and for the unique shape of the Gardine bottle.
The Gardine bottle, both original and elegant, is the result of a happy accident. When he first began to expand his cellar, Gaston Brunel found an old, mouth-blown glass bottle while digging in the ground. He loved it and decided to use a similar shape for all his wine. Initially, he had to go all the way to Italy to find a glass supplier able to copy its quirky shape, but since 1964 all of the Brunel family's wines have been bottled in the unique La Gardine shaped-bottle.