Today’s Sip is from Eric Texier, from the Rhône Valley, a 2019 wine called Chau Fou. Since one of my cats is a bit crazy, it also seemed appropriate. I received this wine as part of a group of samples about a month ago and I am slowly working my way through these gems. The Texier estate is run by Eric and his wife and their son Martin. They have 12 hectares in the Brézème appellation on the left bank of the Rhône and in the Ardèche which is on the right bank. The former is a hill with limestone while the latter has more granite soils with schist and gneiss.

This lovely bottle is a combination of 45% Grenache, 30% Cinsault and white grape varieties
(Clairette, Grenache Blanc, Marsanne) up to 15%. Fruit forward and earthy with a touch of spice and garrigue, it is a perfect sip for a Sunday night supper of pork chops and salad with a slice or two of gruyere cheese.

The family has been working organically since they started and they are interested in only minimal interventions both in the winery and in the vineyard. They use cover crops, don’t plough, and only use hand harvesting. The vines are quite old between 30 to 90 years old.

In the cellar, they use indigenous yeasts, whole bunch maceration, no sulfur added at the start, and no fining or filtration. No sulfur is added to this wine before bottling. It ages on its lees for 12-18 months. It is bottled without fining or filtration.

The family has an underground cellar in a town called Charnay that dates back to the 16th century where it ages its wines.

It was a lovely addition to my Sunday.