2022 Domaine de Fondrèche Ventoux Rosé

Brilliant peach in color with flexes of copper, this wine explodes with fruit in the glass. Find intense notes of ripe melon, tangerine, lemon skin, peaches and pears. The palate has a beautiful textural presentation of soft fruit with grapefruit oil on the midpalate and a saline mineral finish. (ACC) (8/2023)

Pale and slightly coppery in hue, Fondreche's 2022 Ventoux Rose includes a hefty dose of Cinsault, with the balance a mix of Grenache and Syrah. Scents of crushed stone, boxwood and melon rind give it more than just fruity appeal, while it's medium-bodied in the mouth, with a silky texture and a lingering finish that adds notes of peach and guava. Complex and textural, it's a solid wine pretty much every year. (JC) (5/2023)

Located in the foothills of Mont Ventoux lies the one of the top producers in the Ventoux region of the Rhone - Domaine de Fondreche. Vigneron Sebastien Vincenti took over the winemaking from his mother in 2005. With an eye toward biodiversity and using organic and biodynamic practices for many years, Fondreche was recently certified organic in 2022. The winery sits on a plateau comprised of alluvial soils (predominantly clay and gravel) with a sliver of Silex (AKA flint). The fruit for the rosé comes from vines on the sandier siltier soils just below the plateau. This cooler soil helps yield fresher brighter rosés. The 2021 rosé is comprised of 50% Cinsault, 30% Syrah and 20% Grenache from vines averaging 35 years-old. Fermented with indigenous yeasts in stainless steel tank it is then aged for 6 months in concrete tank on the lees before release.