Alcohol: 14.5%
Grape(s): 80% Grenache, 6% Syrah, 4% Mourvèdre, 10% other authorized varietals (Counoise, Cinsault, Vaccarèse, etc).
Location: Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Rhône Valley, France
Tasting Notes: The flagship of Domaine du Pegau, the Cuvée Réservée represents the Domaine's pinnacle over the years. A blend of 13 grape varieties, primarily Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvèdre, the Cuvée Réservée showcases the distinctive characteristics of the Châteauneuf-du-Pape terroir.
Notes: Whole grape bunches are lightly crushed and fermented with wild yeasts for 5-7 days in traditional cement vats. This is followed by a further maceration period of 7-14 days, with1-2 pump-overs per day. The press and free-run juice are then aged in 5,000-liter oak foudres for 24 months, and subsequently blended and bottled without filtration.
Food pairing: Excellent with strong cheeses and grilled/roasted meats
The Domain: The brief history of Chateau Pegau begins with the long history of Domaine Pegau. There have been Ferauds (of French and Italian origin) growing vines in Chateauneuf-du-Pape since 1670.
Paul was one of four children. Feeling that there were too many, he decided to have one child, and hit the jackpot with brilliant daughter Laurence. Paul spent the first half of his career cultivating his 17 acres of Chateauneuf-du-Pape. 90% of the production was sold in bulk to top Negociants; the remaining 10% was bottled as Cuvee Reservee, thus the origin of the name for the basic Chateauneuf.
In 1987 Laurence joined her father and created the Domaine du Pegau. Born to grow wine, she took courses in both viticulture and the beverage alcohol business. She sold wine in Paris, but wanted to come home. Excellent at both winegrowing and business, she took just five years to increase bottle sales from 10% to 100% of production. Since then, her purchases have expanded the vineyards in Châteauneuf to over 42 acres.
Laurence does not have a single arrogant or snobbish molecule in her body, but she is restless and ambitious. In 2012 a large property called Domaine de la Jouve came up for sale. Four miles from Pegau, it is on the banks of the Rhone in the town of Sorgues. It consists of 148 acres and a large, rundown Chateau of 10,000 square feet. The approximately 101 acres of vineyards comprise 62 acres of Côtes du Rhône Villages and 12 acres of Côtes du Rhône, with the balance designated as Vin de Table. Laurence bought it and rechristened it Chateau Pegau. For the first vintage, she and Paul were learning their way, and they declassified most of the Villages to Cotes du Rhone. The red Côtes du Rhône carries the name Château Pegau Cuvée Maclura. The Côtes du Rhône Villages (15% of the production) is Château Pegau Cuvée Sétié. These are complemented by a white Côtes du Rhône, Château Pegau Cuvée Lône. The wines are emphatically not Châteauneuf-du-Pape, nor are they priced accordingly. However, yields have been kept to the absurdly low limits permitted in Chateauneuf, and the wines have all of the density of that great Appellation.
