Domaine de Terrebrune Bandol 2015
-
Suckling
James -
Parker
Robert
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Reynald Delille’s magical blanc does a lot of things well. Let’s start with the aroma: Imagine yourself strolling down a dirt path alongside one of his vineyards on a beautiful sunny day. Inhale deeply, and you might notice whispers of wild fennel, fresh pine, or salty sea air. It is all there in the bouquet of this charming wine, and if you pay close attention you’ll find even more. In its various shades of color, Terrebrune is first and foremost a wine of refreshment, and a wine of great elegance. The white is, of course, no exception. Even better, if you lay it down for five to ten years, it will ripen until it smells of golden mirabelle plums, and the flavors of Triassic limestone will become ever more pronounced in its distinctive finish. The Clairette grape should get a lot more attention than it does. It brings freshness and acidity to southern blends, it drinks up its surroundings and imparts them with beautiful clarity, and its anti-oxidative qualities lend themselves to long life in bottle.
Blend: Blend: 85% Mourvèdre, 10% Grenache, 5% Cinsault
Professional Ratings
-
James Suckling
A poised Bandol with plums, dried thyme, tar, bark and black olives on the nose with hints of dried spices too. It’s full-bodied with fine, firm tannins. Layered with a flavorful finish. Mourvedre, grenache and cinsault. From organically grown grapes. Best after 2025.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Terrebrune's 2015 Bandol is a blend of 85% Mourvèdre, 10% Grenache and 5% Cinsault, aged 18 months in foudres. As it nears four years past the vintage, it's just beginning to be approachable. It showcases floral, tea-like and raspberry notes on the nose, adding currants and pomegranate on the medium to full-bodied palate and earthy notes on the long finish.
Other Vintages
2017-
Spirits
Wine &
-
Spirits
Wine &
-
Spectator
Wine -
Enthusiast
Wine
Before acquiring vineyards, Georges Delille trained as a sommelier in Paris. In 1963, he bought what would become Domaine de Terrebrune, a property in Ollioules, just east of Bandol, framed by the Mediterranean and the mountain called Gros-Cerveau (Big Brain), dotted with olive groves and scenic views—an idyllic spot. During the years following the declaration of A.O.C. Bandol (1941), mass overhauling and reconstruction of vineyards were commonplace, and vignerons were eager to revive the noble Mourvèdre grape. Georges spent ten years just renovating the property; he terraced hillsides, refashioned the masonry, replanted vineyards following the advice of Lucien Peyraud, designated soils to lie dormant and regenerate, and built a new cellar. In 1980, his son Reynald joined him after finishing winemaking school, and together they launched their first bottled vintage of Domaine de Terrebrune, which Reynald named in honor of the rich, brown soils they farm.
Full of ripe fruit, and robust, earthy goodness, Mourvèdre is actually of Spanish provenance, where it still goes by the name Monastrell or Mataro. It is better associated however, with the Red Blends of the Rhône, namely Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Mourvèdre shines on its own in Bandol and is popular both as a single varietal wine in blends in the New World regions of Australia, California and Washington. Somm Secret—While Mourvèdre has been in California for many years, it didn’t gain momentum until the 1980s when a group of California winemakers inspired by the wines of the Rhône Valley finally began to renew a focus on it.
Provence’s leader in concentrated and age-worthy red wines, Bandol is home to the dense, deep and earthy Mourvèdre grape. Like Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Bandol produces characterful reds that, while approachable in their youth, are typically designed for the cellar.
Given its coastal, Provencal situation, Bandol also naturally produces an assortment of charming, aromatic rosés made of Mourvèdre, Grenache and Cinsault.