Domaine du Joncier, L'O de Joncier Cotes du Rhone 2019

All grapes are harvested by hand. Wines ferment naturally with native yeasts. Pump-overs are very delicate because the yields are so low; the fruit is very concentrated and extraction therefore does not need to be forced. Wines are aged for 18 months in underground, gravity-fed caves. The final blend varies vintage-to-vintage. Fruit for L'O de Joncier is harvested before the other reds and has the shortest fermentation time of 10 days

The feisty, vivacious Marine Roussel took her time finding her place in the family domaine. Her father, Pierre, was an agronomist and started Domaine du Joncier in 1964. However, as a young graphic artist, Marine was seeking adventure beyond her small, sleepy town in the Southern Rhone. After living in both Marseille and Paris, Marine eventually felt a strong pull to return home. She joined the domaine in 1989, and has since taken on her new vocation with the zeal that only a true artist could possess. Marine aims to achieve balance, purity, and minerality in her wines. A noble, if not challenging, goal given the sun-baked terroirs that she farms. On the right bank of the Southern Rhone, Lirac shares many similarities to both neighboring crus Tavel and Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Her terraced vineyards of alluvial soil and galets roules mirror Chateauneufs terraces right across the river. Maximum sun exposure and ripeness like that of Tavel must be tempered, and that is where both nature and Marines artistry comes into play. Her terraces benefit from the persistent mistral, whose regular gusts purify the vines of parasites and mildew throughout the entire year. The galets roules in the soil provide good drainage and insulation, preventing the roots from getting too hot or too cold at any given time. In addition, Marine achieved organic certification in her vineyards in 2000 and biodynamic certification in 2011. Her soils are alive with microbiotic activity, lending a hand in both the long-term sustainability of her land and in the mineral expression of her wines. Since the vines naturally achieve such low yields, Marine seeks a gentle tannin extraction, too, an important step that provides balance to the final blends. She makes two impressive Lirac Rouges, the first a classic blend with a majority percentage of Grenache, and cuvee Les Muses, an inky blend made predominately with Mourvedre.