Rhône discovery (3) Domaine Souleyrol, Ventoux
Website: https://domaine-souleyrol.com/
Souleyrol is a beautiful property in Ventoux. It’s a mixed farm with cherries, olives, apricots, table grapes and truffle trees as well as wine grapes. Renaud Veyrier is third generation on the farm, and he was the one who decided to to bottle wines. Previously, the wine grapes had gone to the cooperative. He’d always made wine for the family and had studied winemaking, and in 2018 he made the decision to focus on wine, with the first commercial release in 2020. Souleyrol are now in the process of constructing a gravity-flow cellar.
We visited with Vanessa Veyrier, and spent a lovely hour wandering through the mixed agriculture farm, with the cherry trees in bloom. It’s a lovely place, and the wines are really good.
THE WINES
Domaine Souleyrol Agapè Blanc 2022 IGP Vaucluse
13.5% alcohol. IGP because of too much Viognier, but this has now changed so this could be Ventoux. 60% Grenache Blanc, 40% Viognier. Fruity, fine and pure with a stony mineral edge to the fresh, focused citrus, pear and apricot fruit. Refreshing and with a nice bitter citrus peel twist. 92/100 (€12)
Domaine Souleyrol Agapè Rosé Ventoux 2022
13% alcohol. Grenache, Syrah, stainless steel. Pale in colour this is fresh and quite delicate with a sappy green edge under the bright citrus fruit with a twist of sour cherry. Juicy and mouthwatering. 89/100 (€12)
Domaine Souleyrol Agapè Ventoux Rouge 2020
14.5% alcohol. Grenache, Syrah and Carignan, first made this vintage. Supple, ripe and sweetly fruited with smooth red cherries and plums with a nice warmth. Has some olive and cured meat and finishes smooth and a bit peppery. 92/100 (€12)
Domaine Souleyrol Storgê Ventoux Rouge 2021
15% alcohol. 60% old vine Grenache and 40% Syrah, long vinification in concrete. Very fine and bright with a mineral core with sweet cherries and plums with some pepper spice. Stony and mineral with some cured meat and spice. Lovely intensity here: very fine and expressive. 94/100
Domaine Souleyrol Philia Ventoux Rouge 2021
15% alcohol. Majority Syrah with a bit of Grenache, aged in old barrels for 14 months. Beautiful: has a stony, mineral savoury edge to the beautifully focused cherry and berry fruits with a hint of olive and pepper. Such a stylish wine with lovely purity and balance. 94/100
