Bandol
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Chateau Pradeaux Rose 2021
$32.99Read moreRipe. Structured. Expressive. Vibrant. Long. -
Domaine Tempier Red 2020
$79.99Add to cartRipe. Layered. Harmonious. Juicy. Long. -
Chateau Pradeaux Bandol Rouge 2015
$52.99Mixed Case $45.04
By Lake Side Emotions
Pradeaux is old school - it's as simple as that.
Appellation law requires at least 50% Mourvèdre in a Bandol, and while many domaines hew closer to the minimum, cushioning their wine with hearty proportions of Grenache and Cinsault, Pradeaux produces a full-strength wine of 95% Mourvèdre.
Gutsy, darkly spicy, and unabashedly gamy, Mourvèdre is inherently untamable. Attempts to polish it end up coming off like Bigfoot in a business suit. Unsoftened by destemming, however, Pradeaux Bandol is free to beat its chest and howl, even as it gains complexity and refinement over its staggering four-year elevage. What ends up getting bottled is a pulsing, living wine, shot through with freshly pulverized spices, always with a deeply savory minerality verging on the saline, and a frankness to its tannins. Much tends to be made of young Pradeaux’s fearsome tannins, but these are honest tannins—tannins derived from healthy grapes and ripe stalks rather than from the vanilla-laced staves of expensive barriques. They’re the rambunctious tannins of wild youth, not the cynical tannins of a wine of striving. And there is always a wealth of glowing, sun-drenched Mediterranean fruit bursting through the dense latticework of structure. We revel in these tannins, knowing they will provide Pradeaux Bandol with decades of life.
The 2015 is a powerhouse that expresses Pradeaux's multifaceted personality very well. The aromatics are gorgeous, leading with bright violet accented notes that give way to a mysterious depth of savory elements.
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