Clos Cibonne: Cru Classé of the Côtes de Provence…
5/28/13 -
(in the early 1900s, André Roux of Clos Cibonne helped classify the Crus of the Var...)
Last summer we took a break from the rigorous business of drinking the local Rosés of the Gard département to drive deep into Provence to Clos Cibonne. Curious to know who and what terroir produces these wines, the intrepid tasters of Chambers Street Wines traveled to the source (which happened also to boast an excellent Bouillabaisse delivery service). This is a historic Domaine in the Côtes de Provence that had piqued our interest the year before with Rosés aged an additional year under a veil of surface yeast called “fleurette.” Like an unconventional, French answer to the long-aged Rosés of Lopez de Heredia, the Rosés of Clos Cibonne offer a savory, spiciness on the nose and full, silken texture on the palate that is unique and transcendent of the category. The wines are based on the rare local grape variety, Tibouren, which Clos Cibonne has championed since the early 20th century when André Roux brought the estate to prominence and replanted Mourvèdre vines with Tibouren.
Clos Cibonne is a 15 hectare estate about 800 meters from the Mediterranean. The soil is schist and the location of the vines, in a depression surrounded by hills, means an advantageous wind pattern cools them, offering relief from the scorching Provencal sun. The Domaine is now owned and run by André Roux’s granddaughter, Brigitte and her husband, Claude Deforge. Cibonne is farmed organically though the
Domaine is not certified, and the younger vines are irrigated. For the most part, Clos Cibonne is planted to Tibouren, a vine that produces sweet and thin skinned grapes of uneven sizes that also ripen unevenly. In fact some unripe grapes are left in the press to add spice and acidity to the resultant wine. On the morning of our visit, a crate of grapes awaited pressing and many small green berries could be seen amongst the deep purple. A further advantage of our timing was that we could taste unfermented Tibouren juice, nectar of the gods. There’s some Grenache and Syrah at Cibonne – used in their Côtes de Provence Rouge, which we now have in stock for the first time. Cibonne makes both an old vine and a young vine Tibouren Rosé; both are fermented in stainless steel before going into 100-year-old 1,000 liter foudres for their maturation. Cibonne’s Côtes de Provence Rouge, a remarkably fresh and lively red wine that we strongly urge you to try, is released months before the Rosés.
These unusual and very delicious wines have become staples of the summer months a Chambers Street Wines, or in case you’re interested in the results of forgetting a Rosé Vignettes in your cellar for a year or two, we drank a 1961 Rosé alongside our Bouillabaisse and it was fantastic. Salut! -Sophie
