When Lucie “Lulu” Tempier married Lucien Peyraud in 1936, her father gave them Domaine Tempier, an active farm that had been in the family since 1834. Together they developed the wine growing estate as well as the region itself by helping establish it as its own A.O.C. in 1941.

The property's 60-something hectares of diverse terroir has many named vineyard sites, including Cabassaou which is the smallest production. The Mourvèdre from this site is some of their oldest, and the fruit here is hand harvested and fully destemmed before fermenting with native yeasts in concrete. The wine is then aged 18 months in large olde foudres. This dense and brooding red is tightly packed with black bramble fruit, tense plum skin, bruleed blood orange, and edged with tea and violets. So packed that it requires many years (preferably decades) to truly open up to it's full potential. Mourvèdre is the grape that defines the Bandol appellation, and this is the ultimate showcase of its expression here. Please age this as long as you can. 

Pairing: Your cellar for the next 10+ years

Grapes: 92% Mourvèdre, with Syrah and Cinsault (all vines over 60 years old)

Soil: Clay, Limestone, in a single vineyard with stone walls at the bottom of the hill

Viticulture: Practicing Organic