Le Clos du Caillou : Côtes du Rhône Les Quartz 2024

Characteristics and tasting tips for the Côtes du Rhône "Les Quartz" 2024 from Le Clos du Caillou

Tasting

Appearance
This French red wine has a brilliant appearance, revealing a deep ruby hue with purple highlights.

Nose
Highly expressive, the aromatic bouquet combines scents of ripe red and black fruit such as crushed raspberry, blueberry and blackcurrant. It is enriched by delicate floral notes of violet, sweet spices, garrigue and a subtle mineral touch reminiscent of flint.

Palate
The attack is broad and generous, revealing fruit of great purity. The palate charms with its silky, velvety texture, supported by exceptionally fine tannins. Lovely freshness carries the wine through to a long, elegant finish marked by flavours of jammy fruit, liquorice and peppermint.

Food and wine pairings

This cuvée pairs beautifully with roasted or slow-cooked meats, such as herb-crusted lamb or a traditional daube. It also makes an excellent match for vegetarian dishes featuring Mediterranean vegetables, uncooked pressed cheeses or mildly spiced world cuisine.

Serving and cellaring

For optimal enjoyment, serve this Côtes du Rhône "Les Quartz" 2024 at a temperature between 16 and 18°C, with a brief decanting in its youth. This wine can be cellared and will be at its best between around 2026 and 2036.

The finesse and depth of a Rhône Valley wine by Le Clos du Caillou

The estate

The history of Le Clos du Caillou began in 1895 with the creation of a walled hunting reserve, before the estate turned to winegrowing in the 1950s. Located in the heart of the Rhône Valley, this 54-hectare property is now run by Sylvie Vacheron, together with her children Marilou and Axel. Certified organic since 2010, the estate stands out for its majestic underground cellar and for producing cuvées that combine southern power with great delicacy.

The vineyard

The grapes for this Côtes du Rhône come from the "Le Caillou" lieu-dit, a plot enclosed within the estate's historic walls. The vines, around fifty years old, thrive on deep sandy soils covered with quartz-rich rolled pebbles. This distinctive terroir, farmed organically with controlled yields, encourages deep rooting and optimal ripening of the berries.

The vintage

2024 proved to be a demanding year for winegrowers. Winter and spring were marked by regular rainfall, resulting in high disease pressure in the vineyards. The summer, however, was milder than usual. These gentle summer conditions allowed for slow, even ripening of the grapes, preserving lovely freshness and encouraging the development of a complex aromatic structure.

Vinification and ageing

The grapes are harvested by hand. After meticulous sorting and full destemming, fermentation of the Côtes du Rhône "Les Quartz" 2024 begins with indigenous yeasts in concrete vats. Extraction is carried out gently through punch-downs, pump-overs and rack-and-returns during a long maceration. The wine is then aged for fourteen months in a combination of foudres, demi-muids and older barrels, to refine the tannins without marking the wine with oak.

Grape varieties

80% Grenache, 20% Syrah