Montirius Côtes du Rhône

Montirius is a wonderful example of the values you can find from Côtes du Rhône wines.  They have been a family-owned estate for five generations, and as such have a lot of experience producing quality wine that reflects the traditions of the region.

While they’ve been producing wine for generations and used the knowledge passed down from one generation to another, they have also evolved their methods over the years to improve quality and sustainability.  Over the past twenty-some years they have eliminated the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides.  In 1999 they produced their first wine from biodynamically grown grapes.  They are now certified organic by Ecocert and certified biodynamic by Biodyvin.

Biodynamic farming is a step beyond just organic.  It’s a more holistic approach to agriculture and involves treating the land as a self-nourishing system and employing techniques to encourage the symbiotic relationships between the soil, plants and living organisms.  It employs the use of composts and manure to provide natural nutrients and it even prescribes techniques based on the lunar calendar. It’s some new age stuff.

While Montirius employs these techniques in their vineyards, it appears that the grapes in this Côtes du Rhône don’t come from the Montirius vineyards, but rather from another biodynamic vineyard in the region and it’s vinified and bottled by Montrius.

This wine is produced with 73% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 7% Mourvedre grapes.  The nose is full of delightful aromas, including red raspberry, blackberry, barnyard, leather and spice.  Although there is a decent complexity to the nose the intensity is somewhat subtle.

The palate is well balanced and dominated with cherry, raspberry and blackberry flavors.  You’ll also get some yummy dark chocolate flavors.  The tannins are a little heavy, giving the wine a black tea characteristic on the finish.  That is offset by a tangy acidity.  Overall, it’s a pretty good wine at a decent price.

Wine: Montirius
Variety: Côtes du Rhône
Vintage: 2005
Alcohol: 14%
Rating: 86
Price Paid: $12.98

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