2018 Domaine of the Bee

Retail: £25.00
Member: £20.00
Case: £150.00
Case (Member): £120.00

Varieties: Grenache Noir; Carignan
Vintage: 2018
Country: France
Region: Roussillon
Alcohol: 14.9%
Bottle size: 750 mL
Drinking Window: 2020 - 2030

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Description: Another excellent vintage - now four in a row, from 2015 to 2018 - with real ripeness and concentration - this is a classic Domaine of the Bee flagship red.
Eyes: A deep rich red
Nose: A big, booming nose of forest bramble fruit, roasted black plums, and a little vanilla and clove from 1/4 new oak barrels
Mouth: Immediately charming and open, this wine has had a little longer in barrel then normal (thank you coronavirus), and has a slightly more rounded feel as a young wine, but it has the depth of fruit and freshness of tannin to continue to develop over the next few years. A rich, full-bodied red.
Body: full
Winemaking Notes: All are grapes for Domaine of the Bee were hand harvested, and then hand-sorted at the winery to ensure we only chose the healthiest and ripest grapes. The first Carignan to be picked is fermented in a stainless steel tank. The rest of the Carignan, and all of the Grenache is cold-macerated in upturned demi-muids (500L barrels) with the ends taken out, before being warmed up, inoculated with yeast, and gently punched down 2-3 times a day. After pressing, all of the wine was drained into a mixture of 500L and 225L barrels, approximately a quarter of which are new, and left to mature for 18 months.
Growing Conditions: After a cool start to the year, a heat spike in May ensured a good flowering, and then a long dry period in July, August and September meant that we harvested a good yield of lovely ripe grapes in early October, and our last block from the Coume de Roy picked a few days after the first rain, but just before the heavens opened on the 14th October.
Food Pairing: Great with grilled red meat, hearty stews, barbequed food, and hard cheeses.