THE DOMAINE ROUGE-BLEU, Sainte Cecile les Vignes - Avignon
Created in 2007 and situated between the revered appellations of Gigondas and Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Domaine Rouge-Bleu cultivates its 9ha of land Vineyard spreads around the farm which was probably built 400 years ago and which some parts are handcrafted 1696..
Mostly composed of old vines, their wines are vinified in the pure tradition of the Rhône Valley, exuding the concentration and typicality of the terroir they originate from.
The village nearest to the vineyard is called Sainte Cécile les Vignes.
Domain site opens photographs of Caroline and Thomas
Caroline:
“My approach to winemaking is to harmonise the modern methods taught in Australia with the traditions and styles of France. This has ultimately led to the decision to be based in the southern Rhone region, where the unique terroir and local grape varieties can create wines of rich primary fruit flavours and depth, which, when augmented by maturation in aged oak barrels, produces wines of elegance, balance and complexity.”
Thomas:
“Passionate about wine, I have been surrounded by it all of my adult life. First at work and now on the domaine where I spend my time between managing the vineyard and representing the Domaine worldwide. A lover of wines from all horizons I am, like Caroline, a natural Grenache lover. Becoming a vigneron is a life changing experience and an eveyday learning curve which I hope to be sharing with you all soon, whether you are visiting us or we are coming to you!”
Their philosophy is full respect for nature
“The great feature of our vineyards is the age of the vines which, coupled with the terroir, holds the potential to create wines of superb quality.
In order to magnify this potential, we work to develop the deep roots of our vines which allows them to reach water and mineral complexity in the soil, which is in turn transmitted to the grapes. To do this, we are guided by the principles of biodynamics that promote soil microbial life and we banish pesticides, herbicides and systemic products. Only copper and sulfur are used along with teas of nettle, horsetail and willow.
We believe that when the vine is more deeply rooted, it is able to defend itself against disease and has less need for human intervention. We also believe in the good effects of wild yeasts brought by insects. It is these yeasts, native to our microenvironment, that will ferment our wines, contributing to the expression of terroir.
Grenache reigns here, followed by the Carignan grape variety that has the ability to produce higher acidity and complex flavours when vigour is controlled. A bit of Syrah, and a zest of Mourvedre and a dash of Roussanne (co-planted with our precious 80-year old Grenache) complete the family”.
Questions from Yellow Road are answered Thomas BERTRAND, DOMAINE ROUGE-BLEU owner
1 - You have a vineyard, there is wine, apartments, what would you like to add to this picture? Expand the vineyard, improve the wine, increase sales?
We are always thriving to improve wine quality, improve customer base of course. We are a young winery (Started in 2012) so all the work is to be done to gain public recognition. A lot of energy is sent restructurating our vineyard at the moment. It is very old and needs full attention to be back to productivity.
2 - The traditional question for winemakers: What is your favorite wine (red or white)? And why?
A favourite wine of ours is a balanced wine. There is as many different wine as there is different food. What is my mood, what uis the weather outside, which season are we, who am I drinking with all these factors will make my answer change always. More generally low alcohol, natural or minimum organic wine is a must!
3 - List, if possible, a set (gift box) of four or six own wines (red and white), which, in your opinion, can be worthy of representing your farm
We make 6 wines so I would recommend one of each. Dentelle rouge white and rosé for our light low alcohol fruit driven range. Mistral and vendangeur to showcase the complexity of our terroir and Lunatique to showcase the exception (110 yo vines).
4 - Is your choice for the "Yellow Road" of white (yellow) wine?
Dentelle Blanc
5 - Provence is a famous region, and what is the beauty of your villages Cairanne, Travaillan?..
Our Village is called Sainte Cécile les Vignes. It is a beautiful small village, very active with lots of solidarity between inhabitants. A very god athmosphere between all winemakers and it is famous for its saturday provencal market.
6 - Provence - this and Bonnard, Signac, Cezanne, Dufy, Soutine, Chagall, Matisse, Picasso, Nicolas de Stael...
Many have heard of Provence through the paintings of Van Gogh. Maybe you have a small hut in the vineyard, which could become a workshop for a modern artist?
Yes our vineyard welcomes artists and painters every year in the early and late summer
7 - Your vineyards are located in fantastically beautiful places. Have you thought about building your own tourist way...
Our vineyards has a Bed and Breakfast with three roms which welcomes tourists all year round. We also offer walks and visit in the vineyard all year round too anfd even have in our white parcel an educative parcel showing 16 different grape varietals.
8 - You can offer the most impressive view (favorite point) on vineyards or the surrounding landscape.
The view of the Dentelle de Montmirail Mountain chain and the view of Mount Ventoux the highest muntain in the south! They are fantastic to look at and are just in front of our vines. Pictures attached
9 - Which white wine producer (from France or another country) would you recommend for the Yellow Road?
I really love a winery in western Australia. It is called Xanadu and there Chardonnay is one of the finest made in Australia.
Sergey Evtuhov, author of the project "Yellow Road"
