Boutinot's love affair with the Southern Rhône spans thirty years of making wine in the region. In 2010, the relationship was sealed with the purchase of a winery and vineyards above the village of Cairanne. Domaine Boutinot's seven vineyards are planted with classic southern Rhône grape varieties - old vine Grenache Noir and Syrah, Mourvèdre and Carignan Noir - and they all sit within the Cairanne Cru boundaries, sanctioned in 2016 when Cairanne was granted its own appellation status.

The slopes above the village of Cairanne are bedecked with treasure troves of well-established vineyards, steeped in the classic terroir of 'agrilo-calcaire' (chalky clay) and bristling with parcels of low yielding old vines, some of very rare and ancient grape varieties. The six varieties, some familiar (Grenache Noir, Syrah, Mourvèdre) and others less so (Cinsault, Counoise and Carignan Noir) are hand-picked and hand-sorted to ensure perfect ripeness.

Some of the varieties are co-fermented for greater complexity and all are fermented in large 6,000 litre oak vats by the natural yeasts present on the grape skins. Vinification is traditional, aided by manual pigeage and gentle remontage. Les Six was later assembled and matured in the same tronconique for 10 months and bottled at Domaine Boutinot's cellars in Cairanne. This is a new style of Cairanne which, thanks to the ancient varieties included in the assemblage, is also a Cairanne whose heart holds dear the traditions of yesteryear.

Les Six has a natural affinity with chicken and lamb dishes, such as a rack of lamb roasted with a herb crust (especially those herbs found growing wild in the southern Rhone such as thyme, rosemary, oregano, marjoram and sage). Vegetables roasted with these herbs would work well too, as would more robustly flavoured vegetarian dishes.

IWSC 2020 - Bronze Medal