Dip your nose into a glass of Serge Férigoule’s Vacqueyras: you’ll find the liquid reincarnation of the stony terroir from which this red hails. Garrigue—wild thyme, rosemary, and, judging from the scent, some lavender—grows copiously around the vineyard, adding an almost smoky, resinous perfume to the wine, as if the baking summer sun had liberated its aromas and the mistral had swept them off to flavor the grapes. Aged in large, neutral foudres, this wine has chewy tannins that are amazingly elegant, while it contains no shortage of depth and density for extensive bottle aging, if desired. Cuvée Floureto’s mineral finish keeps things very fresh, providing a tension rarely evident in Grenache-based blends. It almost seems as though the wine has been filtered through stones—but don’t worry, that’s the only kind of filtration we would allow this Vacqueyras to endure.

Blend: 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 10% Carignan-Mourvèdre-Cinsault