Domaine Fondreche Il Etait Une Fois 2009 (750ML)

93 RP / 93 WA

The first vintage for the cuvee, the stacked 2009 Cotes du Ventoux Il Etait Une Fois (80% Grenache, 15% Mourvedre, and 5% Syrah, aged all in new oak) is a full-bodied, sexy, opulent and mouth-filling southern Rhone that has plenty of garrigue, cedary spice, leather and ripe red and black fruits. Packed with character, ripe, lengthy and guaranteed to put a smile on your face. - Jeb Dunnuck, Wine Advocate

There are only 400 cases of the outstanding 2009 Cotes du Ventoux Il Etait Une Fois, a blend of 80% Grenache from 80-year-old vines, 15% Mourvedre from 20-year-old vines, and 5% Syrah from 15-year-old vines, all aged in new oak. This cuvee takes intensity about as far as you can with Cotes du Ventoux. A tour de force in winemaking, it boasts a dense ruby/purple color as well as copious aromas of licorice, spring flowers, sweet black raspberries and black cherries, pepper and roasted herbs. Broad and voluptuously textured, with a cascade of fruit evident in its multidimensional mouthfeel, the tannins are there, but there is so much fruit and richness that they are largely concealed. 

The leading reference point estate in the Cotes du Ventoux region, Domaine de Fondreche is run with extraordinary passion and impeccable attention to detail by Sebastian Vincenti and Manou Barthelemy. This large estate of just under 100 acres is biodynamically farmed and all the red wines are bottled unfined and unfiltered. Additionally, the Cuvee Nature was produced without any SO2 . - Robert Parker