Chapoutier Marius

(2024) Michel Chapoutier is one of the superstar names of the Rhône Valley, but his acquisitive company now has wine brands from Australia to Champagne. This Languedoc wine comes from vineyards owned by the Chapoutier family planted on clay and limestone soils. It is made without added sulphur, and part of its easy-going charm may come from the fact that a little unfermented grape juice is in the blend giving natural sweetness. It is buoyant and has an elegant floral and cherry lift to the aroma, then the palate is plush and supple, lots of fruit concentration and sweetness on the mid-palate, before ripe and creamy tannins and pert acidity balance. Wild boar or hare ragu would be fabulous with this. Watch the video for more information.

Marius is a blend of grenache and syrah from the Languedoc-Roussillon. Michel Chapoutier named the wine after his grandfather Marius, and then went about making delicious drinking, highly-affordable red wine. The fruity, open, pleasant, red-fruited grenache is the foil to the power and structure of the syrah. Post ferment, the wines are racked several times and left to mature without any sulphur on fine lees, to solidify the wine's complex elements. Each variety is kept separate to achieve the best possible blend. This juicy, garrigue-dusted red over-delivers for its price and complexity. It is a food-friendly red perfect for grilled chicken kabobs or lamb chops.