BEN'S PICK: RAREST RHÔNE SALE
Ben Giliberti, CW Director of Wine Education
Many of you know Alain Jaume's Lirac Domaine du Clos de Sixte well, having made it a CW customer favorite for over a decade. Looking back, it's also been either a "Ben's Pick" or CW Fall Catalog Staff Selection almost every year. It's not hard to understand why. There's something very special about Alain Jaume's Domaine du Clos de Sixte. I'm pleased to report that the just-released 2020 vintage is another triumph: Domaine du Clos de Sixte (Alain Jaume) - Lirac 2020, on sale this week for just $19.99 on case purchases of 12 bottles or more ($21.99 for 1-11 bottles; reg. $24.99.) Please note: quantities are limited.
Clos de Sixte's "specialness" is hard to put into words, but it is unmistakable. The 2020 Clos de Sixte doesn't merely exude a core of warm, ripe fruit; it literally glows with it.
This harmonious, warm-spirited "glow" is something that I've encountered in only a few of the world's most legendary wines. Besides Alain Jaume's monumental 100-point Grand Veneur Châteauneuf-du-Pape Vieilles Vignes, this exclusive club includes the likes of Angelo Gaja's best Barbarescos and Barolos, the occasional 98-100 point Bordeaux (particularly from ripe years like 1959, 1990, 2009, and 2019), and the greatest monument of all to this style, the 1961 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage "La Chapelle" (so special, it was recently anointed as a distinct single estate entitled "Domaine de la Chapelle").
Interestingly, many unquestionably great wines do not have this uniquely alluring quality despite their many other virtues. For example, you'll find it in Château Latour (in fact, in a blind tasting, the 1961 Latour could be easily mistaken for the 1961 Hermitage La Chapelle), but you won't find it in Lafite or Château Margaux. I am certainly not saying that a wine without this special quality cannot be great (indeed, if you happen to have any Lafite or Margaux you're not using, I'll be happy to drink it up for you). What I am saying is that finding this other-worldly dimension of style and enjoyment in a wine that is so everyday affordable is astonishing.
What's the secret behind this special joy? With many great wines, that's a difficult question to answer, but in the case of Clos de Sixte, the answer is easy to deduce: it's the vineyard itself. How do I know? Alain Jaume offers another Lirac called "Roquedon," made on a nearby vineyard, by the same winemaking team, using the same impeccable winemaking standards. On paper (i.e., grape varieties, aging regime etc.), it should be the same as Clos de Sixte, but it never is. Explains owner Alain Jaume, "Our true goal is to allow the Earth's natural forces to be expressed in the wine." The natural expression of this rare and gifted terroir is the true secret to Clos de Sixte.
Here are the details:
** 2020 Domaine du Clos de Sixte (Alain Jaume) - Lirac is made from 50% Grenache, 35% Syrah, and 15% Mourvèdre. Before fermentation, the hand-sorted bunches are crushed and destemmed. Fermentation occurs in stainless-steel vats at a relatively warm 86°F, with frequent punching down of the cap over 18 to 20 days. The wine is then aged in concrete vats and French oak barrels (30%) for 16 months before release.
** The Lirac appellation is located on the "left bank" of the Rhône River, just a few kilometers from Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Although Lirac is one of the official crus of the Rhône Valley thanks to its excellent soils, it remains under the radar. This has kept the price just slightly above that of most Côtes du Rhône Villages reds.
** I agree with Rhône guru Jeb Dunnuck's astute assessment of the fine 2020 vintage: "This charming, forward vintage has produced a sea of beautifully textured, elegant, medium- to full-bodied wines that are already drinking nicely yet will have broad drink windows [with] beautiful purity and balance, soft tannins, and complex profiles."
** The 2020 Clos de Sixte is one of those wines that will be delicious to drink at every stage of its development, starting right now (pull the cork 30 minutes in advance). Drink now through 2030 and beyond. |