Lirac Vieilles Vignes, Les Sables d'Arène, Domaine Giraud 2022 (organic) En Primeur - Case of 6

The domaine began in 1974 when Pierre and Mireille Giraud, both from vine growing families, took on 4 hectares of vines as tenant farmers. Over the years they gradually increased the size of the domaine through purchasing rented vineyards and through inheritance.

They also turned an old distillery into a winery and barrel-ageing cellar. In 1998 the estate passed to their children, Marie and François. There are now 19 hectares of vineyards in three parts of Châteauneuf although split into 64 parcels, 8 on the Crau plateau in the centre of the appellation known as the ‘Terres Blanches’, 8 in the Gallimardes area at the south of the appellation, an area with a very stony terroir, and the rest on sandy soil around Pignan in the Rayas area. Many of the vines are 100-year-old Grenache with plots of Mourvèdre, younger Syrah and also small amounts of white varieties. They concentrate very much on selecting parcel by parcel, using minimal intervention in both the vineyard and the winery, and are upgrading their cellar. The wines are bottled unfiltered and unfined. They are in conversion to organic viticulture. Three red wines are produced, the Tradition from a blend of the areas and grape varieties, the Gallimardes from that area and mostly Grenache, and the Grenache de Pierre from the sandy Crau and Pignan areas, all Grenache. These last two cuvées are not made every year. Marie and François are very serious and dedicated and making wonderful wines.