On the nose, dried herbs, wild rosemary, redcurrants and violets, well balanced with red fruits on the palate.
Château Pas du Cerf means 'the deer's crossing'. It got this name in 1553 when King François was hunting here. Eight generations of winegrowers have passed on the vineyard, most of these being female winemakers. Because of this, they sometimes call it Château Pas de la Biche — not meaning what you think it does, but the french for doe.
Syrah makes up 80% of this wine and is the main grape variety in the blend. It thrives here in Provence — the very long hot summers are needed to ripen the grapes. The addition of grenache lightens the wine a little, giving juicy fruits. Carignan is a grape that is back on the up after years of rubbish carignan wines. It is now having a renaissance, especially in the south of France.
Syrah and shiraz are exactly the same grape. Syrah is the French name and shiraz is used in English — speaking countries. You can tell what style your wine will be from which name they use. Shiraz usually means it will be made in the Australian or American style with more fruits and spices. French and Italian style syrah has more acidity and earthiness.
This vineyard has schist soils. Ancient, ancient mud turns into rock. That rock can be pushed deep underground in intense heat and pressure for millions of years until it becomes slate. It does that process all over again to become schist. Schist is great for grapes, it retains heat acting like a big hot plate under the vineyard. It produces big wines with minerality.
Le Merle is our core red for January 2021. This blend is made up of 80% Syrah, as well as Carignan and Grenache. The addition of Grenache lightens the wine a little, giving juicy fruits. Carignan is a grape that is having something of a renaissance at the minute after years of rubbish Carignan wines. The vineyards at Château Pas du Cerf have been passed down eight generations of winegrowers, most of these being female winemakers.