Chateau La Mascaronne

Chateau Mascaronne is located in rolling hills just outside the Medieval village of Le Luc. It lies half way between the Provencal towns of Brignoles and Fréjus, with St Tropez to the south-east and Chateau Miraval close by. I mention Miraval because it used to be owned by Tom Bove, who subsequently  bought Mascaronne in 1999, devoting a great deal of time and expat rigour  to the cultivation of its wild charms, somewhat  in the manner of  a Russell Crowe film or a Peter Mayle book. Tom  sold Miraval in 2012, allowing current owners Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie  to build a global brand onto the foundation of his brilliant efforts in the vineyards. Mr Bove is not, however,  averse to marketing opportunities himself; in the late 1970s he released a wine called Pink Floyd, a rosé naturally enough, to celebrate the  that the eponymous rock group had recorded part of their album ‘The Wall’ there. Terraces rather than walls adorn the pretty vineyards now…
 
Mascaronne has, if anything, even better terroir, tough and rocky and dramatically difficult to cultivate. The winemaker Laurence Berlemont is particularly keen on indigenous varietals for the white and rosés ( with Grenache, Cinsault and Rolle to the fore) but broadens the  perspective a little for the reds, which are here dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon, Mourvèdre, Syrah and Grenache. The local geological profile is dominated by rock (and Rolle), much of which has been painstakingly excavated to plant the vines; the average altitude is around 300 metres. All of the fruit is domaine-sourced and estate-bottled. The wines are organic, limited in production and uniformly excellent.