Southern Rhône
JULY 2026
Land of delicious, approachable, everyday wines (and fancier ones, too), France's Southern Rhône Valley is rural and beautiful and down-to-earth and full of wonderful food & wine.
Photo above: Guillaume Gonnet harvest
The region has a complex pyramid of vineyard classification with entry level wines designated as Côtes-du-Rhône AOC. The next level up (which generally indicates more complexity in the wine from specific soils & microclimates) is Côtes-du-Rhône Villages. Third level in the pyramid is Côtes-du-Rhône Villages + [the name of the village], an additional honor. The pinnacle of the pyramid are Rhône Crus, where only the name of village is on the label. These are the most famous and expensive wines from the Rhône: Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Gigondas, Vacqueyras & more.
That said, you're getting two Côtes-du-Rhône wines in your club, a red & a white, and we are sure that you won't suffer. They are absolutely wonderful wines and supply is good if you decide you need some more!
Maison Lavau
Sablet (Southern Rhône)
The Lavau family has an interesting history. René Lavau moved from Saint-Émilion to Tunisia in 1870 and ran a small farm with vineyards and a citrus orchard, turning it (with the help of his son, Jean-Guy) into Tunisia's biggest wine producer. After Tunisia's independence from France in 1962, Jean-Guy and his wife, Anne-Marie, bought a small wine cellar in Sablet and returned to run it, establishing Maison Lavau in 1965.
Over the years, they cultivated relationships with growers all over the Southern Rhône, and in 1994, they purchased the biggest winemaking cellar in the Vaucluse (located in Entrechaux). Their sons, Frédéric and Benoît (pictured above) joined the family business in the mid-1990's. Together in 2009, the brothers purchased another large winemaking facility in Valréas as well as vineyards in the Rhône Valley including: Domaine la Décelle (Valréas), Domaine de Carmignan (Bagnols-sur-Cèze), and Domaine Les Évigneaux (Rasteau).
In 2013, they formed a joint-venture with Bénédicte and Charles Bonnet of Château Maucoil, a Châteauneuf-du-Pape property, with the four owners now co-managing Maison Lavau with its three winemaking facilities working in partnership with 350 growers, as well as 140 hectares of their estate vines. Their goal is to offer the best of the Rhône Valley at affordable prices. Be glad about that!
Maison Lavau 2025 Côtes du Rhône Blanc • Southern Rhône, France • Reg $17.99 | Mixed Case $14.39
Grenache Blanc-Viognier 60/40 from flat and hilly vineyards in clay & limestone soils located in the Vaucluse (appellation in the Rhône) and Gard (appellation between Rhône and Languedoc).
Aromatic nose of Williams Birne (a German brandy made from Williams pears), so... rich, ripe, complex pears (minus the alcohol). Flavors = fresh, ripe pear (but not sweet!!) with a hint of apples. Medium-bodied with terrific acidity. Makes this wine fresh. Then a soft, peppery finish with a note of salinity. Absolutely great wine for the money. Drink now to 2 years.
The winery says to enjoy with "a fish terrine, salmon tartare, seasoned fish or even a mid-dry goat’s cheese." See their suggested plate of mini-tartines above.
Guillaume Gonnet
Châteauneuf-du-Pape (Southern Rhône)
Third generation vigneron Guillaume Gonnet returned to the Southern Rhône Valley in 2006 to run his family’s Châteauneuf-du-Pape estate after years of training in winelands around the world: Bordeaux, Burgundy, Napa Valley, New Zealand and finally in Australia where he met his wife, Kelly.
Together they planned to build the estate to show what Rhône varietals can do in different terroir around the world. Their philosophy is minimal interference, following "biodynamic agricultural principles, ensuring the wine is the right blend of Southern Rhone varieties - Grenache, Syrah and Mouvèdre, to attain complexity, balance and soft, elegant tannins and following an approach to aging using very little wood influence."
Today they produce wines from Côtes du Rhône, Côtes du Rhône Village, Lirac, Cairanne, Tavel, and Châteauneuf du Pape (vineyards pictured above & below), with plans to make wine with old-vine Southern Rhône varietals in Spain and the Barossa Valley (Australia).
Here are Guillaume & Kelly giving you a tour> of their estate and talking about their winemaking philosophy.
Guillaume Gonnet 2023 Cötes-du-Rhône Rouge • Southern Rhône, France • Reg $14.99 | Mixed Case $11.19
80% Grenache, 20% Syrah from sandy-clay soils. Old-fashioned Côtes-du-Rhône from a Châteauneuf producer. Raspberry, wild strawberry fruit, soft garrigue on the nose. Medium-bodied. Flavors add in blackberries on the finish. Fresh, easy-drinking, food wine. An absolute steal for the money. We suspect this one won’t last long, but for now extra wine is available if you're interested. Drink now to 2 years. Enjoy with burgers, pizza, grilled meats & more.
A Note from Jens:
Pictured above is Guillaume Gonnet’s Chateauneuf parcel, Bois de Boursan, with plantings of Grenache, Clairette, and Grenache Blanc (and the medieval village of Chauteauneuf-du-Pape on the hill in the background)… one last view of the Southern Rhône for this month's club. Such delicious, easy-to-like wines from this pastoral part of France – hope you enjoy them!
Your wine club pick-up tasting is always the 2nd Saturday of the month. We host this tasting so that you can taste and learn about your wines before enjoying them at home.
You'll also be able to taste the FLAGSHIP club wines. Our July theme is Summer Wines from Europe, featuring a Provence rosé, Nero d'Avola from Sicily, and the white grape Moschofilero from Greece.
Hope you can join!
Cheers,
Jens Strecker, Owner
Portalis Wine Shop
If you are here because you’re curious about our wine clubs: Here’s more general info & online sign-up. You can also peruse the last 12 months of both clubs to get a feel for the themes we pick and the wines we showcase: Portalis EXPLORES (our everyday wine club) & Portalis FLAGSHIP (our signature club).