Domaine Houchart Cotes de Provence Blanc 2021

A traditional blend of Clairette and Rolle. The aromatics are subtly bright and spicy with fruity citrus notes. This is an immediately attractive wine. It’s full of lemon, mango and orange peel, round and medium-bodied. The Clairette provides the acidity and lift while the Rolle provides the texture.

Domaine Houchart, located at the foot of Mont St. Victoire near Aix en Provence, was founded by Aurelien Houchart in the 1850s. The great painter Paul Cezanne, famous for his images of the mountain, was a friend of the family who visited the estate frequently during that period. It is now owned by Aurelien’s great-granddaugther Genevieve, who is married to Jerome Quiot, owner of Domaine du Vieux Lazaret and Chateau de Trignon. The 200 acre estate is planted with 10 traditional grape varieties on soils of red clay, sandstone, gravel and chalk and produces 55% rose, 40 % red and 5% white wines. The soil is reddish with a high proportion of limestone, gravelly in places with some steep slopes, and is ideally exposed. Half the Domaine lies in the Cotes de Provence St. Victoire sub-appellation, which was created in 2005 to acknowledge the exceptional quality of wines from this part of the region.