February may be off to a chilly start, but we are planning for summer and have just tasted the new 2025 vintage of our favourite Provence Rosé from Domaine Saint Andrieu, the ever-popular L'Oratoire.  Despite being owned by the Cordier family, who also own Château Talbot in Bordeaux, L'Oratoire is an affordable luxury, at just £115 per dozen in bond, or £105 when you buy 2+ cases.  We also have limited availability of magnums, along with the domaine's excellent Rouge and Blanc, so you can take care of all your wine needs for summer parties and entertaining in one order!  

We called at the domaine last autumn whilst visiting family who live in Provence.  We met with the charming Susan Huet, who joined the domaine after previously working at Château Margüi, the estate owned by George Lucas, just a kilometre away from Saint Andrieu as the crow flies.  Château Miraval is also just 3km away, highlighting what a superb area this is for fine rosé production. 

Drive along any main road in Provence and you are likely to see rosé-producing vineyards, owned by both small and large domaines, as well as village cooperatives (many of which produce cheerfully delicious wines).  However, in a region known for hot summers, producing high-quality rosé requires either the cooling influences of the Mediterranean (for example, at Domaines Ott's Clos Mireille vineyard) or of altitude, notably in the foothills of the Alps. 

The drive up to Domaine Saint Andrieu emphasises its remoteness, taking you through the medieval town of Brignoles, home to the 13th-century Palais de Comtes de Provence, and up past the little village of Correns.  After the village, a rough track climbs steadily higher (we were glad we were in a 4-wheel-drive vehicle that day) until you reach the winery and the pretty little nineteenth-century château itself, with most of the vines at around 380 metres. 

A mural in the centre of Brignoles capturing the sense of the 'real' Provence that lies inland, away from the coastline and tourism areas.

For every hundred metres of altitude, the temperature falls by 1 degree C, so the elevation has a significant impact on reducing the peak temperatures in summer, helping to retain fresh acidity and fine aromas in the finished wine.  It also means a longer ripening period before harvest, allowing the grapes to develop additional phenolic (flavour and aroma) ripeness whilst they reach physiological ripeness. 

The nineteenth-century château at Saint Andrieu, which is also the holiday home of the Cordier family when they are taking a break from Château Talbot!

This area is known as 'Provence Verte', with the foothills of the Alps offering a relatively green landscape.  The cooler temperatures at this altitude are also part of the recipe for producing fine, elegant rosés, and we certainly noticed this elegance when tasting the new 2025 vintage.  In a hot, dry year like 2025, this altitude made all the difference.  The rosé has a delightful depth of colour but still retains its freshness and purity of fruit.  

Nancy Bignon-Cordier bought the domaine in 2003, with 30 hectares of vines and olive trees set amongst the larger 600-hectare estate of woodland and garrigue.  Cordier and her winemaker Gregory Guibergia bring all the expertise and technical know-how you would expect from the owners of the great Bordeaux names of Châteaux Talbot and Sénéjac.

The winery is gravity-fed and the parcels of Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah and Rolle grapes are vinified in small batches, with an extremely delicate pressing for the rosé; in fact the first 70% of the juice runs freely from the grapes, under their own weight (known as the 'jus de goutte'), with minimal skin contact. 

Approximately half of the vines are under the Côtes de Provence AOC (bottled as Domaine Saint Andrieu) and half under Coteaux Varois en Provence, bottled under the L'Oratoire.  The distinction is based purely on the soil types, with more limestone in the vineyards responsible for the Coteaux en Varois wines, giving them a more linear, focused style which we love.

We were also impressed by the freshness and balance of the L'Oratoire Rouge and Blanc, which we are offering only for en primeur customers again this year.  The red is a reserve wine, from the 2020 vintage, aged in barrels previously used at Château Talbot.  A blend of Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon, it manages to balance exuberant dark fruit with a savoury style, making it an excellent red for outdoor parties this summer.  The white is from Rolle (the Provencal name for Vermentino), from the 2025 vintage, and has an excellent, slightly rich texture, with high acidity and salty character on the finish...think turbo-charged Picpoul de Pinet.  

The combination of world-class winemaking expertise brought to this authentic and secluded corner of Provence makes these three wines a compelling proposition, and we are very proud to be their sole importers into the UK, so please let us know if you would like to place an order.

Offered en primeur, expected June 2026.