2023 Domaine de la Damase, Côtes du Rhône Rouge, Rhône Valley, France.
The 2023 Côtes du Rhône by vigneron Sèbastien Latour, a unique blend of 60% Grenache and 40% Carignan, is deep and aromatic in the glass with a cool mineral/stony personality, it shows off an array of black and blue fruits, with briar laced boysenberry, plum and cherry leading the way on the full bodied palate. There’s lovely background accents that add complexity too with classic Mediterranean Garrigue, subtle peppery spice, crushed lilacs, a light charming earthiness and some tarry licorice all playing roles here. This was just what the doctor ordered on a chilly evening with some simple cuisine, there’s no pretense here and at 14% natural alcohol it feels nicely balanced, no flabby weight or heat, allowing the purity of fruit and place to shine throughout. This is the kind of Côtes du Rhône I love to stock up on and pop corks without any guilt, and I’m grateful to my friends at Deer Park Wines for turning me on to this one, a producer that I’ve not tried before and I am a lover of old vine Carignan, so that just made it all the better. The Domaine de la Damase has various US importers, but here in California it is brought in by Hobo Wine Company winemaker Kenny Kenny Likitprakong, who’s friends with Sèbastien. I can see on the website that Sèbastien does a set of pure single varietal offerings as well, which look intriguing and a more traditional Côtes du Rhône Village as well.
Domaine de la Damase is located in the village of Violès, at the foothills of the Dentelles de Montmirail, and in the heart of the Vaulcluse in the Southern Rhône Valley with a Provence climate and complex soils including limestone, schist, sandy, clay and rounded “galets” stones.This small Rhône domaine, run by the Latour family, who has been making wine here at Domaine de la Damase since 1872 when the estate was originally estabished. It is Sébastien Latour who now works the vineyards and makes wine for the Latours, along with help from his parents Bernadette and Serge. Sèbastien is the 5th generation of the Latour family to make wine and has really elevated the label and brought Domaine de la Damase to level it is now with an exciting series of wines, including this organic certified Côtes du Rhône bottling. The winery’s says that the domain covers 12 hectares, with 1,5 ha. of Côtes du Rhône Village Plans de Dieu, 6,5 ha of Côtes du Rhône and 4 ha of IGP. The vines are all organically farmed and have been in conversion into agriculture biologique, or biodynamic, since 2011. The wines here are typically naturally fermented with whole cluster and raised in a combination of well used barrels, with some ex-Burgundy and larger demi-muids and foudres to allow transparency, as seen here in the Côtes du Rhône Rouge. I highly recommend this one, especially at the price, and look forward to exploring the other wines at Domaine de la Damase in the future.
($15 Est.) 91 Points, grapelive