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Up to his death in 1978 he led the move towards carbonic maceration vinification - a technique which softens tannins and produces a relatively lighter fruity wine approachable very shortly after bottling. A bust of Dufays is the first thing you see as you approach the tasting room. Today Nalys is owned - like many great Bordeaux estates - by the insurance company Groupama which might not bode well but my tastings confirm that the tradition of experimentation and quality control is alive and kicking under the new management.

The estate comprises about 50 hectares on three parcels of land. They continue to cultivate all 13 grape varieties permitted by the AOC and regularly test different blends; the cave contains an amazing variety of maturation vessels from concrete tank through different sizes of wood: demi-muid, foudre, barrique to an ultra trendy unlined concrete egg - a bizarre looking experiment, Nalys owns part of the famous La Crau plateau - familiar to many from the label of Vieux Telegraph.

Huge rust galets surround 50 year + Grenache vines - this is as dramatic a landscape as you could hope to find in the region. On a fine day you can enjoy not just the sight of these majestic, tangled vines but spectacular views west to Mt. Ventoux, south to the Palais du Papes at Avignon and east to the village of Chateaneuf. The range of wines is simple at present : a classic cuvee red, the 2004 and 2005, and in white three vintages 2004 to 2006. Around 20% of production is given over to whites way above the appellation average and Nalys whites have always enjoyed a special reputation. The whites are elegant showing greater complexity with bottle-age - notes of whiteflowers, candied orange peel and citrus with a pleasing glycerol fatness. Unlike some other whites from this appellation - of equal standing - these achieve a subtle richness without resorting to overt use of oak. Nalys reds are round , generous and fruity with a touch more licorice and spice in the 2004 - the tannins are ripe and soft . . . these are wines that can be appreciated when young. Given the potential of their site and their thirst for experimentation this is a property about to become more serious - definately one to watch over the next few years.

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Denis is the latest in a long line of family members who have made wine here since 1692. The Alary approach if one can summarise is about intensive care in the vineyard, traditional vinification in the winery . . . for instance Denis stripped out the new stainless steel fermentation tanks some 5 years ago and reinstalled traditional cement tanks because he wasnt happy with the temperature control achievable with the former! He also has no truck with small barrels/new wood . . .all maturation takes place in huge old wood foudre for a minimum of eight months.

The range comprises red and white AOC Cairanne, these are Grenache and Rousanne dominant respectively, a more tannic/spicy Reserve du Vignerone ou Brunote still Grenache dominant but with 20% Mouvedre, two premium red cuvees the Syrah biassed Font d'Estevenas (inky black, blackberry and smoke and notes of Provencal herbs), and the La Jean de Verde , from 60 year old Grenache, a veritable Vin de Garde.

Denis in his role as President of the producers is at the forefront of the push to promote Cairanne from CduR Villages status up to a full Cru . . . Denis's opinion is that yes it will happen , but not before a long drawn out process perhaps taking quite a few years yet, that the key issue for the independent vigneron is not for example yield control ( Alary is already producing only 35-38 hl/ha) but the delimitations of which parcels can be AOC Cairanne Cru , which simply CduR or even Vin du Pays. As every producer here like Alary owns a mosaic of land ( something he argues is a real net benefit- the art is in the assemblage of these diverse terriors) this is going to be a tricky one to manage with the authorities.

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He comes across as a man full of energy and determination to improve quality and to stamp his own mark on production methods. Unlike his father, Richard prefers to mature in lined concrete cuve rather than the traditional foudre that still dominate the chai. For his white Lirac he has introduced 20% Picpoul - a rare sighting in the Rhone valley - to the Grenache blanc and the Clairette.

His rationale is to raise the acidity level - anyone who has experienced Picpoul de Pinet ( Languedoc's answer to the rasping Gros Plant of the Loire valley) will get this immediately. And it works - this is one of the most mouthwateringly crisp white rhones I have tasted, it's delicious. There are four reds, a barrique aged cuvee prestige, the staple of the range - a traditional Lirac "La Fermade" , a fruity Cotes du Rhone "Variations"" and a Vin de Pays Coteaux de Ceze. All Maby's reds show great typicity asnd character and the Lirac is capable of ageing . . . a Fermade from 1994 showed superbly at a recent La Madelene tasting.

Maby's Tavel rosè is a tad chunkier, darker, and more rustic than some other quality producers but nonetheless packed with summer fruit, floral notes, is crisp and well balanced. Alongside two vintage pink champagne's Maby's Tavel was voted best Rosè of the year in the December 2007 issue of Decanter.

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The estate lays claim to being the oldest of the appellation - its Gallo-Roman fermentation vats are perfectly preserved. There are just 15 hectares but a diversity of terroirs since the estate straddles two geological faults. Louis makes three cuvees of Gigondas, a traditional cuvee based on 70% Grenache, in good years a special cuvee the "Valbelle"" aged in 40% new barrels, and the 'Homines Fides' , 100% Grenache. In addition to these and a range of Cotes du Rhone - the distiguishing characteristic of Saint Cosme is that since 1997 it has also operated as a Negociant business , that is Louis buys in grapes from other Rhone appellations and then makes the wine at Saint-Cosme. Currently these include a Condrieu, a St.Joseph, a Cote Rotie as well as a Chateuneuf du Pape.

All the wines here are bottles without filtration. The style of Louis's Gigondas is about elegance rather than sheer power - the wines are packed with flavour , mainly black fruit . . . especialy black cherry, plus liquorice, wood smoke and grilled steaks. The Valbelle 2005 is a sumptuous wine showing it's 40% new wood maturation with ease, muscular yes but with astonishing complexity and a long long finish. Robert Parker awarded this wine 92 points, commenting; "Its absolutely superb".

Never one to rest on his laurels Louis Barruol has just completed building his brand new cellars - for years the domain had been lacking space in the cellar and they had to use different locations in Gigondas for ageing and storing wines but the spanking new cellars are now operational and available to view for our clients in 2008.

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In fact the property itself and a large part of the estate is in Cotes du Rhone AOC - though as Sylvie explains the demarcation line separates by a few metres identical vines, identical assemblage, and no doubt the same fastidious attention in the winery - the consequence of which is that the Cotes du Rhone range here is only a whisker away from the quality levels of the Chateauneuf du Pape and at around half the cellar door price represents tremendous value for money.

The terroir here is either sand or red galets - wines produced from the latter parcels , whether CduP or Cotes du Rhone, are branded Quartz. Caillou is very much about reds - less than 1 hectare is given over to whites. The range comprises an entry level Cotes du Rhone from 90% Grenache, a "Bouquet des Garrigues"" Cotes du Rhone from 50 years + old vines and 85% Grenache, "Les Safre"" a secial cuvee Cote du Rhone from sandy parcels of land, a special Cotes du Rhone cuvee Les Quartz from the galet strewn oldest part of the domaine, and then the two Chateauneuf du Pape cuvees, the traditional regular cuvee and the premium Quartz. The latter is again Grenache dominant, receives a 33 day fermentation in wooden cuves, maturation is in foudre and large wooden cuves for 12 months.

The Syrah component is matured in new barriques for a full 18 months. Jancis Robinson's assessment of the 2004 : "The red Quartz bottling positively vibrates with minerality and shows great intensity". The 2004 bottling of Quartz was awarded 5 stars . . . one of only 3 in a tasting of several hundred CNduP . . . in the December 2007 Decanter magazine tasting. This is a hugely impressive range of wines from a passionate and dedicated team and one that due to the geographical layout of the estate, affords wine lovers remarkably high quality at price points from just 6.5 euros through to 71 euros!

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But given all this history and its natural good looks - the 18th. century chateau is breathtakingly beautiful- it might just be that the wines themselves are mediocre. Not so. Under the skilled management of perfectionist Alain Dugas La Nerthe is in the front rank of the appellation. The 90 hectare estate is situated to the south of the village on the road to Sorgue/Avignon on some of the rockiest terroir in the region.

There are many old vines..the average age is 40 years and since 2000 has held full organic certification. The range comprises a traditional red, which represents 77 of the 90 hectares ( normally 55% Grenache, 17% Syrah, 15% Mourvedre, 7% Cinsault, 3% Counoise, 3% others ), a white ( from 32% Grenache blanc, 30% Roussanne, 22% Bourboulenc and 16% Clairette). There are in addition two premium cuvees available , in red the Cuvee des Cadettes which has more Mouvedre and the white Clos de Beauvenir based on 60% Roussanne. The latter is a sumptuos tropical fruit laden wine with complexity and length the match of many a fine burgundiy.

The Cuvee des Cadettes is regarded as one of the appellations most prestigious wines : the colour is deep and rich, with intense aromas of blackberry, blueberry and wood spice, tannins are huge but integrated and the wine has an astonishingly long finish. Robert Parker awarded the 2004 Cuvee des Cadettes 92-95 points in his recent summary of Rhone wines. La Nerthe is not just a show-piece it is an estate at the top of its game.

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There asre around 40 hectares of which 8 are planted with white varieties. The range covers Cotes du Rhone, from a seperate holding in the Gard - the red is about as fine an everyday CduR as you could hope for; a red and a white "classic cuvee"" Chateauneuf du Pape - the cepage changes by vintage but for the 2004 red it was 35% Grenache, 35% Syrah, 20% Mourvedre, 10% Cinsault, and two prestige cuvees, red and white Barberini - very different cepage here - the red Barberini - very concentrated and opulent - is usually biassed to Grenache, the white - baked pear and well integrated oak spice - is based on Roussanne.

There is also a super rich red the "Reserve Secrete"" only released in exceptional vintages. This is a wine that Robert Parker gave 97 points to ( the 2000 release ) placing it in his top 30 wines worlwide in 2003. The reputation of Solitude had fallen somewhat in the 70's and 80's but since 2000 there has been a rapid renaissance. The wines regularly score well in blind tastings and competition, the Reserve Secrete 2001 winning the International Wine & Spirit competition gold medal in 2005. Robert Parker wrote; "Absolutely prodigious, and unquestionably one of the vintage's most wines". For such a prestigous and sizeable estate Domaine de la Solitude comes across as very much a family concern - the Lancons extend a warm welcome to our guests and conduct a tour of the Cave with great enthusiasm and good humour.

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Nick's approach to wine making is to treat the raw materials with great respect . . . they are not quite organic but only a whisker away from being able to make this claim. Nick is no believer in wood, the wines are matured in traditional cement tanks before being transferred to stainless steel before bottling. The bulk of production is behind a Vin de Pays de Vaucluse ( this is a delicious bargain), the remainder a Cotes du Rhone and the star of the range the dense, extracted and wonderfully rich Cotes du Rhone Villages Cairanne.

All the reds are based primarily on Grenache ( around 60%), with support from Syrah, Mourvedre and Carignan. Nick had been making an experimental white but has given it up to concentrate his talents on the reds. There is also some Carainne made under license for Meffrethe mighty Gigonda negociant sold under the brand name Laurus. These are matured in 275 litre barrels . . . the only wood to be seen in the huge winery building here. The Thompson's side-line is a new gite business, two adjacent stylishly appointed appartments converted from the domaine's stable block . . . worth checking out at www.domaine-ameillaud.com

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The principle wine maker is now daughter Isabelle and her sister. Their range of wines includes a Gidondas . . . elegant spicy character . . .and some of the best Beaumes-de-Venise Villages reds of the appellation. Thry also own some land down on the flat towards Sarrian from which they make a refreshing Vin du Pays du Vaucluse. The de Menthon philosophy embraces lutte raisonnee, hand harvesting, very light filtration and most importantly a complete bar on wood maturation.

The wines spend up to 24 monthe in concrete cuves prior to bottling. There is a relatively high percentage of syrah here, 40% in all the red cuvees, even 60% in the Prestige special cuvee. I first came across their wines at a restaurant in Covent Garden (the deliciously soft 2003) over a very pleasant lunch with La Madelène executive coaching partner Binki Taylor and her husband. Imagine my delight at finding the same wine on my own doorstep. Actually, Isabelle tells me that though the 2003 is a wonderful wine , the 2004 is even better, a vrai vin du gard. On tasting she is perhaps right - the same flavour palate of dark plums, black cherry, and spice but with a great deal more tannic structure. Some critics were a bit dubious at the elevation of Beaumes-de-Venise to full cru status but doubters should get hold of a case or two of these wines . . . they are stunners.

If you want to try for yourself Jereboams in the UK stock the 2003 at a very reasonable £7.45 whilst Redortier wines are to be found in the US from Woodland Hills Wine Co. and Wine House - both these located in California.

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