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Domaine la Soumade

Rasteau - Cuvée Prestige

17.30€

Produced from vines between 30 and 50 years old. Brick red in colour. A rich and complex bouquet of black and small berry fruits. Medium to full-bodied on the palate with lovely fruit, complemented by classic wild herbs and pepper “seasoning”. Balanced acidity and fine tannins encourage a hearty meal accompaniment. A great value wine that be drunk relatively young (3 to 5 years) but will reward you if you keep it up to 10 years.

Style: Red

Grape varieties:70% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre

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Red Wine Grape Varieties

Southern Rhône wines are almost always blended around Grenache to bring balance, complexity and richness of aroma to the wines. Thirteen varietals are permitted. The main varieties are:

Grenache – Medium ruby colour and high alcohol. Delightfully fruity (red fruits) in youth, spice: prune notes with age. Medium dry tannins that soften with age.

Syrah – Deep colour with purple shades. Very tight but velvety tannins giving good ageing potential. Violet and/ or black fruit aromas. With age the aromas evolves towards wild aromas of leather, truffle, and towards liquorice

Mourvèdre – Dark brick red, high tannin brings additional ageing quality to the blend. Sometimes animal notes in its youth become fruity (dark berries, leather, undergrowth, pine, liquorice) and spicy with age.

Cinsault – High proportion in Rosé. Elegant, fruity aromas, light colour and tannin (in reds).

White Wine Grape Varieties

Grenache Blanc – Low acidity giving smoothness and length on the palate with floral aromas and notes of apple and pear.

Clairette – Brings acidity and freshness to the blend. Floral, complex aromas of rose and acacia with notes of white peach and exotic fruit.

Roussanne – Brings finesse and delicacy and a great deal of elegance. Good acidity in the northern Rhône enabling the wine to age well. Complex aromas of honeysuckle with touches of apricot, hawthorn or narcissus.

Bourboulenc – Brings good acidity to the blend. Floral aromas.

Marsanne – Medium acidity, with high aromatic potential in young wines. Complex and subtle floral aromas of acacia, dried fruit and nuts (almond, hazelnut, walnut).

Viognier – Medium colour with low acidity and very fruity (pear) in the Southern Rhône. In the Northern Rhône, it brings suppleness and smoothness. Great aromatic potential – acacia, honeysuckle, violet, almond blossom, linden, and with age, musk, honey and dried apricot.

Terroir: Clay-limestone parcels of vines between 30 and 50 years old. The deep roots of the middle-aged vines and varied terroir brings a nice complexity to this wine. Soils are predominantly clay, limestone and stones but vary in content. Parcels are lightly sloping (predominantly south facing) and at varying altitudes.

Oak: None

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Oak Flavours

The vast majority of wines in the Southern Rhône are aged in neutral tanks such as concrete and stainless steel in order to preserve the delightful fruity characteristics of Grenache. Where oak is used, it is often only used for a proportion of the blend. The majority of wines in the Northern Rhône however, are aged in oak.

The amount of oak flavour in the wine depends on:

  • The size of the barrel – Less surface area in contact with the wine = less oak flavour
  • The age of the barrel – Less oak is imparted in each subsequent wine.
  • The level of charring (“toast”) and type of oak used by the cooper

The following classifications are used for wines listed on this website:

No Oak – The wine is aged in neutral vats or large, old oak barrels that impart no oak flavours. These wines will be fruit-forward and bright in their early years.

Light Oak – Oak flavours are present but do not dominate the wine when young. The wine may only be partly aged in smaller oak barrels and/or the barrels may have been used for one to three prior wines.

Prominent Oak – Oak flavour is a noticeable feature of the wine, particularly when young. Oak also imparts oak tannins into the wine which can increase the ageing potential of the wine, thus allowing the wine to develop complex aromas over many years.

Drinking time: 3 to 10 years

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Drinking Time

The majority of everyday wines are produced to be drunk within a year, or two of their vintage date. Fine wines that demonstrate a balanced acidity and good tannin structure have the ability to be aged over many years. Oak flavours and red wine tannins soften with age, which allow more complex aromas to develop. Deciding when to drink a fine wine is very much a matter of personal taste. You should drink the wine earlier in its life if you prefer its fruity (“primary”) aromas, accepting that tannins and any oak flavours will be more prominent when the wine is young.

Reviews: WE 93 pts (See below)

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Reviews

The ratings of leading reviewers are listed here with their written comments detailed at the bottom of the page.

Remember that “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. Each wine reviewer has personal tastes and, as hard as they try, preferences can be reflected in the numerical score a reviewer gives to a wine. This is why is important to read their comments rather than judge a wine by its numerical score.

JR = Jancis Robinson. Score out of 20 points.
RP = Robert Parker, Wine Advocate. Score out of 100 points.
JD = Jeb Dunnuck. Score out of 100 points.
WS = Wine Spectator. Score out of 100 points.
W&S = Wine and Sprits. Score out of 100 points.
WE = Wine Enthusiast. Score out of 100 points.
VM = Vinous Media. Score out of 100 points.
JS= James Suckling. Score out of 100 points.

Shipping costs are calculated per box of 6 bottles. Each box can contain a mixed selection of wines.

Wine Enthusiast (WE)

2019 vintage (93 points): Sun-kissed but zesty blackberry and boysenberry flavors are etched by veins of salt, crushed granite and peppercorn in this full-bodied blend of 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 10% Mourvèdre. Matured in equal parts stainless steel and large-format barrels, it’s pristine in black-fruit flavors and briskly balanced in acidity. Edged by very fine, peppery tannins, it’s vibrantly youthful now but should improve through 2029.

The Roméro vineyards date back to the early part of the last century. Up until 1979, the grapes were sent to the local cooperative. André Roméro was the first of his family to ferment wine from the family vineyards. Ownership of the domaine is now in the hands of his son, Fredéric who has continued his father’s approach of growing full bodied reds with fine tannins, luscious fruit and great ageing potential, particularly for their top cuvées. The domaine covers 31 ha (76 acres), mostly in the cru of Rasteau with 3 ha of terrace vineyards in Gigondas and some vineyards in Côtes du Rhône classification. The terroir of Rasteau is mostly on south-facing slopes with a little more clay than some other appellations which produces full-bodied wines.

 

The domaine is focussed on dry reds but also produces a Vin Doux Naturel (fortified) red wine which is wonderful with blue cheese and chocolate. The winemaking emphasises good, but soft extraction and precise temperature control. The reds are fermented in stainless and large wooden vats for the more concentrated juice. The three main Rasteau cuvées are aged in concrete and foudres (large, old oak barrels). The top cuvées are partially aged in used demi-muid (600 litre) oak casks.

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