Clos du Caillou Cotes-du-Rhone Les Quartz 2017
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Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Pairs well with grilled pork sausages with herbs, roasted lamb, and ribs with smoky chipotle glaze.
Blend: 80% Grenache, 20% Syrah
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2017 Cotes du Rhone Les Quartz looks to be something special. Full-bodied, concentrated and velvety, it delivers intense fruit notes of ripe raspberries and stone fruit that linger on the finish.
Range: 91-94 -
Jeb Dunnuck
The 2017 Côtes Du Rhône Les Quartz is a step up, offering complex kirsch, black raspberry, spice, and garrigue notes as well as some toasted bread hints. It's rounded, supple, and beautifully balanced, with fine tannins and a great finish.
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James Suckling
This has a vibrant and rich feel with attractively succulent draw on the palate, which holds fresh, juicy red-berry flavors. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold.
Other Vintages
2021-
Suckling
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Robert
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Dunnuck
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Spectator
Wine
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Suckling
James
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Dunnuck
Jeb -
Parker
Robert
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Parker
Robert -
Dunnuck
Jeb -
Spectator
Wine -
Suckling
James
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Dunnuck
Jeb -
Parker
Robert
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Parker
Robert
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Parker
Robert
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Robert
—Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate
From robust Côtes-du-Rhône to memorable Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Clos du Caillou wines arguably represent some of the finest values in all of France. Proprietor Sylvie Vacheron and winemaker Bruno Gaspard are keeping the great work of the late Jean-Denis Vacheron alive with wines that are heady, robust and mouth-wateringly lush.
Caillou tends wonderfully old Grenache vines, some of which are 70 to 100 years old. With older Syrah and Mourvèdre added to the mix, it’s no wonder that Caillou wines are across the board impressive for their power, extract and deep minerality. The estate’s Chateauneuf terroir borders the impressive domaines of Chateau Rayas and Beaucastel.
Yet many of the Vacheron-Pouizin family's old vines are classified, by a quirk of 1923 politics, Côtes-du-Rhône and Côtes-du-Rhône-Villages. It’s why our Côtes-du-Rhône barrel selections show surprisingly like its kin in Chateauneuf-du-Pape.
In 1996 Jean-Denis Vacheron took full control of the viticulture and élévage at this estate. Under his stewardship, the wines of Caillou steadily gained stature, and today are benchmarks for the appellation. He understood that temperature-controlled fermentation and a cool, clean cellar are necessary to craft wines with refinement and true complexity.
With bold fruit flavors and accents of sweet spice, Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre form the base of the classic Rhône Red Blend, while Carignan, Cinsault and Counoise often come in to play. Though they originated from France’s southern Rhône Valley, with some creative interpretation, Rhône blends have also become popular in other countries. Somm Secret—Putting their own local spin on the Rhône Red Blend, those from Priorat often include Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. In California, it is not uncommon to see Petite Sirah make an appearance.
Typically thought of as a baby Chateâuneuf-du-Pape, the term Côtes du Rhône actually doesn’t merely apply to the flatter outskirts of the major southern Rhône appellations, it also includes the fringes of well-respected northern Rhône appellations. White wines can be produced under the appellation name, but very little is actually made.
The region offers some of the best values in France and even some first-rate and age-worthy reds. Red wine varieties include most of the Chateâuneuf-du-Pape varieties like Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre, Cinsault, and Counoise, as well as Carignan. White grapes grown include Grenache blanc, Roussanne and Viognier, among others.