Domaine
de
Tara
enjoys
a
superb
location
at
the
heart
of
the
Luberon
Regional
Natural
Park,
one
kilometre
north-west
of
Roussillon,
and
facing
the
Monts
du
Vaucluse,
Mont
Ventoux
and
the
village
of
Gordes.
The vineyard is entirely situated within the Côtes
du Ventoux AOC (Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée)
area. It is planted on an east-facing hillside at 250m altitude, on
calcareous – tufaceous clays that offer excellent drainage with
the Mas de Tara, the estate’s beautiful house, standing right
in the middle of the vines.
T
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.D
U
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.V
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N
T
O
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.
A
P
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T
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O
N
The
Côtes
du
Ventoux
A.O.C.
area
is
part
of
the
vast
belt
of
Rhône
Valley
vineyards
that
stretch
from
Lyon
in
the
North
down
to
Avignon
in
the
South.
It
received
its
first
classification
V.D.Q.S.
(Vin
Délimité
de
Qualité
Supérieure)
in
1953
before
it
achieved
A.O.C.
status
in
1973
("French
classifications").
The
output
from
the
7500
hectares
of
vines
consists
of
75%
red
wine,
20%
rosé
and
5%
white.
The vineyards in the Côtes du Ventoux are without question some of the oldest in France. Recent archaeological finds have made it possible to trace winemaking back to around 30 BC. The “appellation” spans 51 communes (administrative areas), all of them in the Département of Vaucluse. The soils here date from the tertiary area, mostly composed of hard limestone, scree and old alluvium containing very smooth stones.
The climate is Mediterranean: dry in summer and very sunny
all the year round. The famous Mistral, the prevailing northerly wind,
provides the vines with remarkable natural ventilation, making it easier
to farm organically or with gentle, common-senses methods.
Blending
.
is one of the essential features of winemaking in the southern Rhône
valley.
Main authorized grapes are:
- For red wines: Red Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault, Mourvèdre
and Carignan
- For white wines: Grenache blanc, Roussanne, Clairette and Bourboulenc.
