Hermitage Le Pavillon 2020 6x75cl

The austere and powerful character of Le Bessard and its granite bedrock creates black, graphite notes, in contrast to the wine’s backbone of superb elegance and very silky tannins

Vineyards

This plot has an area of approximatively 4 ha. It has given its name to this plot selection and has a particular geology. This soil is made up with sediments on a fine layer being on a granitic subsoil. Grapes are hand-harvested to the limit of over-maturity. Due to their age, these vines give low yields.

Vintage

2020 will undoubtedly stand out as an atypical year. The winter was mild marked, by a water shortage over the period, although reserves from 2019 helped to alleviate this. Budbreak was 10 days earlier than in previous vintages. Although snow fell after budbreak and frost was a real risk, it only affected a few vines in Beaumont Moneux. June brought plentiful heat and sunshine in the Northern Rhône and some welcome rain in the Southern Rhône. Grenache in the Southern Rhône looked beautiful and Syrah in the north perfectly balanced. Harvest was earlier than usual starting in early September and proceeded calmly and without any weather pressures. Marked by exceptional earliness and scorching mid-summer heat, the 2020 vintage offers us wines full of elegance and pedigree. They have all the markers of great ageing potential thanks to preserved acidity and remarkable phenolic maturity. The elegance of the red wines and the expression of minerality supported by a beautiful acidity on the whites are the hallmarks of this particular vintage that is full of surprises.

Winemaking

Totally destemmed, the grapes ferment in concrete tanks. From one to two daily treadings ensure a good extraction. The temperature of fermentation does not exceed 32°C. Maceration lasts between 4 and 5 weeks, to obtain a polymerization of tannins. Only the free-run wine is used for this single vineyard. The wine is matured in oak casks (with a 30% average proportion of new ones) between 18 and 20 months. The clarification is natural.

Enjoy with:

• Grilled and Roasted Red Meats
• Pizza/Pasta
• Casseroles/Stews
• Mild Creamy Cheeses
• Mature Strong Cheeses

Great with beef and game in sauces and all cheeses