Well, this is a first. I couldn't find a single picture of this wine on the web.
This is one of the more serious CDR that I have encountered in some time. The Rouge Bleu CDR is a wine that would leave many guessing wrong as to its origins. It leads on the nose with intense dark fruits, garrigue, and smoke. The palate is viscous and structured, with tannins that you would expect from an old-school Chateauneuf du Pape that had squeezed every ounce of umpf from the Syrah and Mouvedre. The mouth-coating structure is briefly refreshed with a quick pop of acidity that precedes the savoury finish. This wine will surprise you when you see the price. It is an excellent value for anyone who has an affection for the wilder, feral side that is less-often seen from the Rhone these days.
ABOUT DOMAINE ROUGE BLEU
In the vineyard, one of the Domaine’s particularities is the age of its old vines most of which would probably have been abandoned or replaced. Planted in 1965, 1955, 1934 and 1910 for its oldest parcels, Domaine Rouge-Bleu’s vineyards lie mostly in the Côtes du Rhône Village Sainte Cécile appellation.
Certified organic, the Domaine’s philosophy and practices today extend much further. Inspired by the fundamental principles of biodynamic farming and vinification we favour nature and traditions over farmer’s comfort.
Located beside a natural spring, source of the river Alcyon, we are gifted with both pristine water and fantastic terroir. Our Domaine’s essential goal is to preserve its complex biodiversity and bring it to the world through our wines.
To preserve soil microbial life and indigenous yeasts as well as protect our crop we banish pesticides, herbicides, and all systemic products. Only low level of copper and sulphur are used along with essential oils and natural preparations such as nettle or seaweed teas for the well-being and healthy state of our vineyards.
While Grenache “King of the South” reigns here, we also distinguish ourselves by our rare Carignan vineyards (less than 5% left in the Rhône Valley) essential to the character and unusual freshness of several of our cuvées. We also cultivate Syrah, Mourvèdre, Cinsault and 16 different white varieties.
Our vineyards are not irrigated and are 100% hand harvested
In the cellar, we continue these organic principles producing balanced wines recognised by their freshness, elegance, and authenticity. Using traditional porous concrete tanks for most of our vinification and ageing, our reds also benefit from the use of neutral oak (10yo barrels on average/no oak flavours) to tame the force brought by maceration with stems and wild yeast vinification.
Reds are mostly vinified without destemming and all wines see minimal sulphur addition, well below all Organic and Biodynamic authorised levels. Finally, our reds distinguish themselves by their long ageing before release of up to 3 years which is uncommon in village appellations such as ours.
Our vinification methods ensure a long ageing potential to all our wines, even the most modest ones.