The red wines of the Rhône Valley were the inspiration for this blend, in which Carignane and Grenache Noir
bring tangy red fruit, Mourvèdre fills in with savory gaminess, Alicante Bouschet adds spicy blueberry fruit (and
color!), and Petite Sirah gives peppery backbone. These century vines in Oakley in the sands on the San Joaquin
delta demonstrate the true meaning of teamwork, producing a rich and spicy mouthful of deliciousness.
*Coquille is pronounced “ko-keel” and it is French for shellfish or scallop, like the scallop shells on the Shelton
family coat of arms.

-Winery notes

 Priorat, Spain
40% Grenache, 25% Carignan, 14% Cabernet Sauvignon,
12% Syrah, 6% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc, 1% Tempranillo
Alc.14%
 
The Casa Gran del Siurana project began in the year 2000 to produce the best
possible wines in Priorat from scratch selecting the land with most potential,
choosing the most suitable vine stocks and cultivating them carefully until the
optimum moment for harvesting, then deciding on the best means of vinification
and ageing.

WINEMAKING
Fermentation is carried out both in steel tanks and in oak barrels, with ageing on
the lees in vats and a small part ageing in barrels.
TASTING NOTES
Very deep cherry red. Intense, fresh aromas of cassis, red fruits, blackberries,
redcurrants, with a balsamic and spicy background. Fresh but meaty in the mouth.
Silky, full-bodied with elegant and present tannins

-Importer notes

Grapes for both the Rivesaltes and Rancio sec are Grenache gris, harvested by hand from a small 1.9-hectare vineyard of 70-year old goblet vines. Following fermentation and a week-long maceration, elevage is undertaken in a former horse stable situated behind the chateau, a truly special place for the rearing of oxidative wines. The wines are kept in used 225-liter Bordelais fûts, stacked twos and threes, and year-by-year they concentrate and develop the rich texture and notable rancio character that is a hallmark of their elevage.

One of our long time direct import properties. From the same owners as the famed St. Julien Chateau Talbot this beauty comes from Coteaux Varois en Provence, on 15 ha of vines with a cooler and windier terroir on deep clay-limestone slopes.

Grenache 52%, Syrah 22%, Cinsault 20%, Rolle 6%

Mas Amiel Vertigo Rouge

Highly energetic, this wine’s radiance and impulsive red berry and rose petal aromas are instantly appealing. Ample and fresh on the palate, its flavors are also tasty and fruity, underscored by vibrant minerality, brought about by the schistladen soils – the preferred terroir of great Grenache wines.

Winery: Mas Amiel
Appellation: Cotes du Roussillon
Average age of vines: N/A
Farming Methods: N/A
Maturation: This product is blended in concrete vats for a period of 6 months.
Soil: Deep limestone schist
Varietal: Grenache noir, Carignan and Syrah
Vineyard Orientation: Schist-laden slopes, facing North and South
Vineyard Size: 20 ha

-Importer notes

In 1997, Catherine Roque, already a vigneronne in the Vallée de L’Orb, acquired Mas D’Alezon and its 7 hectares in the northern corner of Faugères. The vineyards are in the village of Soumatre and, ranging from 350 to 450 meters in altitude, are the highest in the appellation. Catherine’s vineyard is certified organic and she employs bio-dynamic principles to enhance the health of the soil and the plants. Catherine grows Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah for her reds and Clairette and Roussanne for her white. The average age of her vines is 25 years, including plots of 70 year old Grenache and 80 year old Mourvèdre. Due to the combination of infertile soils and cool micro-climate, her grapes are very slow to ripen and yields are typically 20 to 25 hl/ha. The domain’s two red wines are vinified similarly.

The Presbytère is 80% Grenache with the remainder a blend of Syrah and Mourvèdre.

-Importer notes (Wine Traditions)

Originally, this was to be a rosé, but Amélie didn't like the result, so she decided to make a lighter, more elegant and refreshing red. The base of Grenache comes from an old hillside vineyard just behind their house and winery, which in turn is immediately south of the village of Montpeyroux, while the Syrah and Carignan come from nearby sites. The wine sings of its Mediterranean heritage, rich with licorice and tapenade in a long, lean, tension-filled profile. And check out its refreshingly low alcohol!

The grapes are de-stemmed and raised entirely in tank. The SO2 additions are minimal and done following devatting, then again during élevage, and a third time after blending. Typically the total amounts to 25 mg/l, which is less than Demeter's threshold for natural wines (Demeter's thresholds are 100 mg/l for organic wines; 70 mg/l for biodynamic wines; and 30 mg/l for natural wines).

The label was designed by her daughter Gabrielle and son Paul (then six and four respectively) with help from friends. That, plus the fact that the cuvée is the most recent in the domaine's range, accounts for the name Petitou--in spirit, the little one. Production averages 7,500 bottles.

-Importer notes (Vintage 59)

Le Clos is an isolated 2.22 acre parcel of vines on a south-facing slope surrounded by forest. It's in the commune of Montpeyroux but Amélie labels the wine under the Terrasses du Larzac appellation to keep it separate from her Montpeyroux bottling, which comes from a number of different sites scattered about the commune and is given a different élevage.

Le Clos was planted in 2001 to 40% Grenache, 30% Mourvèdre and 30% Syrah. That reflects more or less the blend in the bottle. All of the varieties are hand-harvested, but the Syrah inevitably is harvested and vinified first, while the Grenache and Mourvèdre are normally harvested later and together and are co-fermented. All ferments are native, and the wine is aged for ~18 months in 600L demi-muids, 20% of which are new. A normal year sees 300 cases.

-Importer notes (Vintage 59)