Domaine Thunevin-Calvet
This very special Cotes du Roussillon Villages, Cuvee Constance, is produced by the exciting partnership of Jean-Luc Thunevin, the owner of Chateau Valandraud in St. Emilion and Jean-Roger Calvet, a young and talented winemaker from Maury.
With a passion and determination to produce great wine, Jean-Roger Calvet decided to leave the co-operative and began vinifying tiny quantities of characterful wines from old vine Grenache and Carignan, in a small shed in Maury. In 2001 he teamed up with the forward-thinking businessman, Jean-Luc Thunevin, who not only shared Jean-Roger’s vision, but was also in a position to offer much needed investment and immediately began acquiring new vineyards. Together, they founded the domaine Thunevin-Calvet in 2001. A mere ten years before was Jean-Luc’s first vintage of his ‘garage wine’, Chateau Valandraud, the success of which immediately set him on the road to international acclaim. Over the years he has inspired and developed the production of many other ‘garage wines’ around Bordeaux and other parts of the globe. He acts as a consultant for many properties in Bordeaux and has recently purchased three estates in Margaux, Pomerol and Lalande de Pomerol.
The first vintage for Thunevin-Calvet was another ‘garage’ wine, produced from vineyards purchased by Jean-Luc and vines Jean-Roger had selected from the Cave-Co-operative. Over the years, the domaine has continued to grow and now comprises some 60 hectares, whilst the partnership has gone from strength to strength with the wines receiving great international press. Today the ‘garage’ has been replaced by an imposing and spacious, well equipped winery.
The quality is continually improving here. Jean-Roger, a true man of the soil, is beginning to work the vineyards under biodynamic principles. As in the beginning, his aim is to produce expressive, characterful wines of the region. Whilst new wood is still important, barriques have been replaced by demi-muids and foudre. Although the fruit is still picked at exceptional ripeness, great care is taken to exclude any over-ripe grapes. The resulting wines are benefiting from an enhanced freshness and minerality. Indeed the freshness and an approachability in these wines is more akin to Priorato than Tarragona.
The Cuvee Contance is a great reflection of its name, as since its first vintage it has continued to show a constantly high level of quality and remarkable quality/price ratio. The 2008 vintage is superb. Produced from a blend of 50% Grenache and 50% Carignan, planted on schist soils, the yields here are a mere 30 hl/ha. The wine is given a traditional vinification and aged for 14 months in concrete vat. It is bottled without fining or filtration. Possessing a lovely complexity and super balance between ripe fruit and flinty minerality, this is drinking beautifully now and can be enjoyed over the next two years.
With a passion and determination to produce great wine, Jean-Roger Calvet decided to leave the co-operative and began vinifying tiny quantities of characterful wines from old vine Grenache and Carignan, in a small shed in Maury. In 2001 he teamed up with the forward-thinking businessman, Jean-Luc Thunevin, who not only shared Jean-Roger’s vision, but was also in a position to offer much needed investment and immediately began acquiring new vineyards. Together, they founded the domaine Thunevin-Calvet in 2001. A mere ten years before was Jean-Luc’s first vintage of his ‘garage wine’, Chateau Valandraud, the success of which immediately set him on the road to international acclaim. Over the years he has inspired and developed the production of many other ‘garage wines’ around Bordeaux and other parts of the globe. He acts as a consultant for many properties in Bordeaux and has recently purchased three estates in Margaux, Pomerol and Lalande de Pomerol.
The first vintage for Thunevin-Calvet was another ‘garage’ wine, produced from vineyards purchased by Jean-Luc and vines Jean-Roger had selected from the Cave-Co-operative. Over the years, the domaine has continued to grow and now comprises some 60 hectares, whilst the partnership has gone from strength to strength with the wines receiving great international press. Today the ‘garage’ has been replaced by an imposing and spacious, well equipped winery.
The quality is continually improving here. Jean-Roger, a true man of the soil, is beginning to work the vineyards under biodynamic principles. As in the beginning, his aim is to produce expressive, characterful wines of the region. Whilst new wood is still important, barriques have been replaced by demi-muids and foudre. Although the fruit is still picked at exceptional ripeness, great care is taken to exclude any over-ripe grapes. The resulting wines are benefiting from an enhanced freshness and minerality. Indeed the freshness and an approachability in these wines is more akin to Priorato than Tarragona.
The Cuvee Contance is a great reflection of its name, as since its first vintage it has continued to show a constantly high level of quality and remarkable quality/price ratio. The 2008 vintage is superb. Produced from a blend of 50% Grenache and 50% Carignan, planted on schist soils, the yields here are a mere 30 hl/ha. The wine is given a traditional vinification and aged for 14 months in concrete vat. It is bottled without fining or filtration. Possessing a lovely complexity and super balance between ripe fruit and flinty minerality, this is drinking beautifully now and can be enjoyed over the next two years.
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