Wines

La Coudette Rouge - AOC Côtes du Rhône Villages

 

The Winery

The Domain de la Coudette is one of the 10 exclusive members of the Estezarques Co-operative at the southernmost end of the Cote du Rhone wine region. A rarety is that each winemaker produces his own separate Cuvee within the co-operative. The winemakers of Estezargues practise sustainable agriculture using minimal spraying, indigenous fermentation only, no filtration, no fining and minimum sulfur at the bottling stage only. Domaine de la Coudette is the sole wine produced by Daniel Maggi and comes under the top appellation Cotes du Rhones Village, restricted to wines issuing from a single village, here the village of Signargues.

This blend of 50% Grenache and 50% Syrah, displays complex fruit aromas and silky tannins, matching Chateauneuf du Pape, its renown neighbour.  

 

Southern Côtes du Rhône

The southern Rhône sub-region includes vineyards between Montelimar to the North and Avignon to the south, growing along the Rhone river and its tributaries, between the Alps to the east and the Massif central to the west. As opposed to the continental climate of the northern part, the southern Rhône sub-region has a Mediterranean climate with milder winters and hot summers. Drought can be a problem in the area, but limited irrigation is permitted. The differing terroirs, together with the rugged landscape which partly protects the valleys from the Mistral, produce microclimates which give rise to a wide diversity of wines. A feature of cultivation in the region is large alluvial pebbles covering the land along the river Rhônes. They absorb the heat of the sun during the day to keep the vines warm at night when there is often a significant drop in temperature.

 

The southern Rhône's most famous red wine is Châteauneuf-du-Pape, a blend containing up to 19 varieties of wine grapes as permitted by the Châteauneuf-du-Pape AOC rules. Other nearby AOC regions including Coteaux du Tricastin AOC, Côtes du Ventoux AOC, Côtes du Vivarais AOC, Lirac AOC, Tavel AOC and Vacqueyras AOC may contain even more varieties in the blend. Gigondas AOC, on the other hand, is predominantly made from Grenache noir has a more restricted set of permitted grapes. Depending on the specific AOC rules, grapes blended into southern Rhône reds may include Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Carignan and Cinsault. Similar wine blends are known globally as GSM, after the first three varietals. The reds from the left bank are full-bodied, rich in tannins while young, and are characterized by their aromas of prune, undergrowth, chocolate and ripe black fruit. The right bank reds are slightly lighter and fruitier.