Rasteau Domaine La Soumade 2021

Description

André Roméro is one of our most characterful and talented growers and a store favourite. He founded the domaine in 1979 and was joined by his son Frédéric in 1996 on completion of his oenology studies. Today the estate covers 26 hectares, including a new plot of 2.5 hectares of the finest land in Rasteau – pure ‘Argile bleue’ with 60 year old vines.The yields at Soumade are low – around 40 hl/ha for his Côtes du Rhône, 35 hl/ha for the Villages and much less for his super cuvées. All the grapes are picked exclusively by hand.

The blends are mainly Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre, the proportions varying a little with each vintage. The grapes receive a cold maceration of around 4 days followed by a cuvaison of some 20 to 30 days depending on the cuvée at a temperature of 32°, coupled with a system of Burgundian pigeage inspired by Clos des Lambrays in Morey-Saint-Denis. The wine is then matured in cement tanks for one year before spending 6 months in a variety of oak: foudres, demi-muids and barriques. The wines are fined with egg whites but receive no filtration