Marcel Orford-Williams
The lavender blue shutters remain in place. Unmistakable Provence. The wines are desirably pink, dressed in bottles that seem to get fancier every year. Money is no object for many of the well-heeled estates. The wines are not surprisingly without fault. But are they worth all the hype and bling?
The Paris wine fair allowed me to taste a 100 or so Provence pinks and the answer is, most of them all taste the same and are without interest. Better wines can be found in the Languedoc, Spain or Italy. But, scratch the surface a little and ignore the bling and there are still plenty of excellent pinks from Provence.
New to us last year was Château Les Mesclances. This is an old family estate just behind the pretty port of Hyères. As from last year it has a new winemaker, a young talent who made some gorgeous 2018s. His 2019s, from a better vintage, are delightful.
Explore more from Provence