If you’re winding down the summer by sitting on a terrace overlooking the French Riviera right now I applaud you, but if not don’t despair, we have the perfect wine to transport you to the Provençal coast: Bandol Rosé. These elegant, sunset-pink wines rule the rosé world for good reason: they effortlessly combine crisp refreshment with deep, savory complexity. The only rub is that their deserved rise in global popularity has come with ever steeper prices, but not so at Domaine Le Galantin. This small, family owned and operated estate produces textbook, Provençal rosé perfection every vintage, and somehow the price has barely budged. This is the perfect bottle to finish off the summer, but like all great Bandol it only gets better as the months and years go by–and it’s priced so you can load up for the rest of this year and beyond!
If you’re looking for breathtaking vineyard landscapes, Bandol is about as dramatic as they come. Here, just east of Marseille, bush-trained vines cling to steep terraces that look out to the Mediterranean Sea. This is a decidedly hot region, sheltered from any cooling northern winds by a chain of mountains and basking all day long in abundant sunshine. The overwhelming majority of vineyards here are planted to late-ripening red varieties as a result, and indeed it is red wines that have historically been the backbone of Bandol. But, at some point pretty far in the past, local winemakers discovered that they could use those same grapes, press the juice of the skins very quickly, and produce a beverage that could refresh the fisherman and dock workers during the long, hot summer months. Presto, rosé was born and when tourists started flocking in the post war era these “pretty-in-pink” wines began to gain a global following.
Turns out that the combination of limestone and sandy soils, cool nights, careful farming, and salty, Mediterranean breezes can make wines that mirror perfectly the coastal climate of Bandol. The family behind Domaine Le Galantin knows this truth, and lives it. The estate began in 1960 when Achille Pascale purchased the property, which was already planted to old vines and olive trees. For a decade, Achille farmed the land and sold the fruit, and then he decided to bottle a scant 130 cases of rosé in 1972. He began to bottle more and more wine over the ensuing years, slowly adding to the domaine’s holdings. In 1999, he passed the reins to his daughter Céline, and a few years later, his son Jérôme joined the fold. Now, Jérôme works the vineyards and Céline makes the wine. Their best holdings sit on sandy soils over rocky limestone and clay loam, on the old terraces that dictate strict hand management of the vines.
In lock-step with tradition, the Pascale siblings make Mourvèdre the supporting grape of their sunset-in-a-bottle rosé, with some Grenache and Cinsault rounding out the blend. Purity of fruit and complexity of terroir are the focus, but they never lose sight of the fact that this is a wine to quench your thirst too: Every step the Pascales take in the winemaking process helps to preserve freshness; the wine is gently pressed into stainless steel, it ferments at cool temperatures, and malolactic is blocked. The resulting wine is a one-sip trip to Provence. Served chilled in an all-purpose glass the color is a bright, coral pink with hints of salmon and blood orange at the rim; wild strawberries, ruby red grapefruit, Meyer lemon, cantaloupe, pink peppercorn, and a touch of sea salt are all present on the palate, with matching aromas and a super crisp, mineral driven finish. I like this wine with fresh tuna crudo, or really anything in the world of ceviche or sushi, but it goes great with fried foods and of course classic Provençal dishes like bouillabaisse too. Honestly, it’s delicious all by itself on a warm day, or while cooking a hearty holiday meal. Bottom line: load up because this price for Bandol rosé can’t last forever.
