When we offered a second tranche of a rare, mind-melting 1990 Bandol Rouge from Château Vannières last month, many of you took full advantage until our stock hit zero. At the time, we were entirely unaware that Vannières’ liaison was also squirreling away three cases of their indescribably stunning 1983 release. When the word slipped out last week, we secured all of it and I immediately rearranged the offer schedule so we could get these perfectly preserved, nearly 40-year-old beauties into your hands ASAP.

This smoking, deeply brooding Bandol, which spent the duration of its life evolving in Vannières’ 475-year-old cellars, will stand up to the world’s most expensive mature reds. Even if you’re unfamiliar with Mourvèdre, I implore every single one of you to try at least one bottle (maximum of two per person), as it’ll open your palate to an entirely new dimension of wine profundity. If you were fortunate enough to taste their 1990, this ’83 is an entirely different beast: darker, burlier, earthier—a bonafide terroir treat for the ultimate French collector. 

With a mountainous backdrop forming a natural amphitheater, quaint hilltop villages, and the glistening sea always on the horizon, Provence is among Europe’s most breathtaking regions. But if you’re looking to pinpoint Mourvèdre at its most intense, glorious, and age-worthy, all eyes are glued to the tiny, Mediterranean-adjacent appellation of Bandol where titans like Tempier, Pradeaux, Pibarnon, and Vannières reside. 

In decades past, Bandol represented the Provençal equivalent of the greatest Barolo or Left Bank Bordeaux; it was the epitome of dark, deeply complex red wine that demanded many patient years in barrel and bottle before revealing its true glory. There was no “drink now” Bandol or “modern” Bandol—there was only Bandol, the singularly brooding expression of Provence’s most unforgiving terroir. 

Today’s rare 1983 library release from Château Vannières, which was first built in 1547, epitomizes authentic, old-school Bandol Rouge: low yields, a long vinification, a 35-day punch-down regimen, and nearly two years of maturation in large foudres and barrels. After it was bottled, it spent over 36 years resting in the château’s dark, cool, ancient cellars. 

This specific parcel of 1983 was hand-selected by Vannières’ owners, the Boisseaux family, in the Spring of 2020. After meticulously quality-checking each bottle, the winners were topped off with the same wine and re-corked. So, there’s no need to pull out your ah-so or Durand and extract the cork with surgical precision; it pops out with ease. Poured in a Bordeaux stem around 60 degrees and given 5-10 minutes to open up, you’ll find a hazy, dark ruby core moving out to a brick-orange rim that spills out terroir-loaded aromatics like dried currant, star anise, spiced black plum, tar, grilled herbs, fired clay, barnyard, vintage saddle, charred violet, and light baking spices. The palate is medium-plus in body, sporting a sleek, earthy frame with a powerful core of crushed minerals and herbs. I expect it’ll keep firing at this high level over the next five years. Enjoy this rarity!