Chêne Bleu, Ventoux AOC (Rhône Valley, France) 2012

 At nine years of age, this Grenache based wine is at a very graceful moment in its life.  Its color is dark ruby with a touch of amber in the rim and soft, rich black cherry, spicy strawberry aromas.  Its dark fruit flavors are very smooth and integrated with lifted acidity and smooth as silk tannins.  It is not a surprise that this wine is made primarily of Grenache.  Xavier and Nicole Rolet were sponsors of the International Grenache Symposium in 2010.  That event attracted the best Grenache producers in the world, along with some of the greatest lovers of the grape and its wines to share their Grenache love with the world.  Chêne Bleu was created on a property with a written history from 1026.  It is located within the UNESCO-designated Mont Ventoux Biosphere Reserve, an 81,000-hectare (more than 200,000 acres) nature preserve that has been set aside in recognition of its diversity of flora and fauna and as a bird sanctuary.