Domaine Tempier - La Tourtine 2018

Bettane & Desseauve

About the domain :

At Tempier, Mourvèdre is king. A grape variety renowned for producing its best wines with its head in the sun and feet in the water, it finds here an ideal terroir and the listening intelligence of a great winegrowing family. A historic estate in the Bandol appellation, Tempier has existed since the reign of Louis XV, and has been run since 1834 by the same family, Tempier then Peyraud, now assisted by Daniel Ravier, who manages the estate with the same high standards as in the early days. With 38 hectares of vines spread over three communes, the estate produces exclusively Bandol appellation wines, the vast majority of which are reds. The sunny terroir, sheltered from the Mistral by the Castellet promontory, creates ideal conditions for the blossoming of vintages that have become legendary.

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

About the wine:

La Tourtine travels into a sunnier universe, with a colorful spicy relief. It needs at least two years in bottle to mature. Magnificent velvety power restrained by ageing cared for to the millimeter.

About the domain :

Today, Tempier is the benchmark cru in the Bandol vineyards. The Peyraud family has done everything in its power to rise to the top of the regional and, above all, the local hierarchy. Daniel Ravier, the estate's current director, has initiated this reconquest. He was able to launch a major investment program in the winery, with modern winemaking equipment, followed by a complete renovation of the tuns. Then, of course, he paid particular attention to an exceptional winegrowing heritage made up of very old vines of mourvèdre, carignan, cinsault and grenache, which produce, among others, three famous cuvées. La Migoua (10 hectares in Le Beausset-Vieux, half Mourvèdre, supplemented by Grenache, Cinsault and Syrah), La Tourtine (5.5 hectares in the south-facing terraces of Le Castellet, with a large predominance of Mourvèdre, Grenache and Cinsault) and Cabassaou (1.5 hectares facing south, 95% Mourvèdre with a touch of Syrah and Cinsault). Recent vintages have reached a very high level. The estate has acquired the 22 hectares of vines of Domaine de La Laidière, in Sainte-Anne-d'Évenos, mainly used for rosé production, which has led Tempier to produce more rosés than reds.