Xavier Vignon: Masonry’s Loss is Wine-Lover’s Gain
Happy spring! After this long, wet winter, I’m looking forward to some warm, sunny weather.
We did have some exciting events over the winter. One such event was spending a cold December morning with Xavier Vignon, the owner of Xavier Vins.
Vignon was expected to be the sixth generation of his family to be a master mason; the problem was that he was more interested in science, biology, and chemistry than in being a master mason. Reluctantly, his family agreed to his career choice but insisted he complete his 10-year Tour de France, which was required of master masons.
Vignon did his Tour de France, during which he studied wine. Not only did he spend time in many French wineries, he also spent time in Australia and New Zealand. While doing this tour, Vignon fell in love with the Rhone region of southern France. He decided it was there that he wanted to make wine. Xavier became a consultant to many of the top wine producers in the Rhone region. He has provided expert advice and has been a part of producing some of the most prestigious wines in the Rhone Valley.
Through these relationships, Vignon is able to buy wine from up to 200 producers and blend his own wines using the best juice from many parcels. Vignon has made many exceptional wines, including a variety of fantastic wines from the 2015 vintage. The wines from the 2016 vintage are as good, if not better. His wines are organic, and he is also using some biodynamic practices. Vignon’s wines are pure and delicious!
Xavier Vins wines to try:
2015 VENTOUX – This wine is a blend of Syrah, Grenache and Mourvèdre. This delicious red blend is medium- to full-bodied, with ripe red fruit flavors of blackberries, violets, toast and vanilla. It is very smooth and approachable.
2015 COTES DU RHONE – This is a dark-ruby wine with jammy red fruit. It is very smooth and rich with great balance and acidity. Always a great buy!
2015 GIGONDAS – A blend of 95 percent Grenache and 5 percent Mourvèdre. This is a very pretty wine with flavors of ripe plum, blueberry, violet and pepper. It is ripe, rich, round and supple.
2015 VACQUEYRAS – I love this wine from the Vacqueyras region. It has all the characteristics you expect from Xavier wines: rich, pure fruit, great minerality and soft integrated tannins. The Wine Advocate rated it 91-93 points and wrote: “… full bodied charming loads of black raspberry, spice, and plum. It will pair well with beef, lamb, and game.”
2015 ARCANE LE DAIBLE – This is another beauty from Xavier! Jeb Dunnick, writer for the Wine Advocate, scored this wine 94 points and wrote, “This wine is almost 100% Mourvèdre with flavors of blueberry, blackberry, pepper, herb, and spice, awesome integrity, acidity, and plenty of structure. Drink 2018-2033.” This wine will pair well with duck, lamb and strong cheese.
2015 CHATEAUNEUF-DU-PAPE Cuvée Anonyme – A blend of Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah, this wine has lots of blackberry, blueberry, plum, pepper, herb and violet. It is full-bodied, with juicy fruit and plenty of longevity.
2011 CHATEAUNEUF-DU-PAPE Cuvee Anonyme – We still have a small amount left of this outstanding wine, of which Wine Advocate wrote: “… a hidden gem of the vintage, it possesses fabulous notes of blackberry, roasted meats, and leather. Full bodied with beautiful freshness, big tannin, and a layered thrillingly concentrated mid palate. Drink 2015-2026.”
If you are not familiar with these great wines from Xavier Vins, it is not surprising. He has been an oenologist and negociant since 2002, but the first wines weren’t produced until the 2007 vintage.
Xavier Vignon certainly brightened up our gloomy December morning. I hope you give his wines a try to brighten your day.
