The Wines
On hillsides dappled in sunlight, each wine comes from a unique terroir. At the Clos, we make wines from individual fields, in keeping with the spirit of the place.
Little intervention, no chemicals, precise harvesting and low yields: our aim is simple – to reveal the purity of the grapes and the truth of the vintage.
Get to know the characters of our award-winning wines
Le Mistralet / Vin de France
A fun-loving, dry white wine made from 100% muscat grapes that are harvested early when freshness is high and sugar levels are low. With beautiful floral notes and a silk-like texture, it owes its name to the Mistral, a wind specific to the Rhône Valley which brings health and vitality to our vines.
Louis d’Or / AOC Vacqueyras
Originating from an old Châteauneuf-du-Pape recipe, this is a grenache blanc and clairette wine with remarkable impact and complexity. Originating from the limestone rich soils of the Clos, this treasured cuvée is part of the rare 5% of the Vacqueyras appellation in white wine. It expresses a saline minerality, accompanied by notes of fresh pear and tarragon. A wine with the depth of character to put the world to rights.
Les Bateliers / AOC Côtes du Rhône
Bright, fresh and gourmand, this is a wine that invites you back with its great drinkability. This Côtes du Rhone stands out from the rest of the field owing to its seamless tannins and bright red fruit. Sommeliers have been known to serve it at room temperature or chilled, a versatile wine for all occasions.
Fruit Sauvage / AOC Vacqueyras
With notes of wild blackcurrant and delicate spice, this is a wine that everyone has time for, perfect for that midweek catch up with friends or for a night with your feet up at home. As a customer once teased us: “The only problem with this wine is that my husband and I have finished the bottle before we’ve finished cooking!”.
Carmin Brillant / AOC Vacqueyras
With a rich and complex bouquet, this Grenache-Syrah wine originates from 90 year old vines which reflect the harmonious habitat of the Clos. Deep thinking and conversation starting, its supple tannins are perfectly balanced with a gentle acidity to produce a wine with beautiful notes of blackberry and cherry over a long and seductive finish.
Champvermeil / AOC Gigondas
Lauded by Matt Walls as “light style, fresh and precise, with well-balanced acidity and super-fine tannins,” this precious Gigondas is remarkably elegant. With a production of only 2000 bottles a year, whole bunch vinification brings a beautiful subtlety to the wine as well as an impressive aging potential.
Lao Muse / AOC Vacqueyras
This headturner of a cuvée originates from only a handful of rows of vines at the top of the hill from which it takes its name. With very low yields and exceptional concentration, these vines produce a wine that is rich, deep and seductive. Allow it time to breathe before enjoying it with game or roquefort, or try aging it for a decade or two. This is Grenache-Syrah from Southern Rhône at its best.
A philosophy guided
by the terroir
Outstanding wines from outstanding terroir
The quality of Clos de Caveau wines originates in its land. After years of research and experimentation, Winegrower-maker, Henri Bungener, has developed an intimate understanding of the unique “micro-terroirs” that surround the Clos. This respect for the land is reflected in the work in the cellar by producing single terroir wines.
Hillside wines
Our vines are planted on the exposed slopes of the Dentelles de Montmirail with low-fertility, well-drained soils. Vertical geological stratas allow their roots to draw up nutrients and water from up to 50 meters in depth.
This natural setting results in reduced yields, but in return offers great concentration, freshness and remarkable aromatic complexity.
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Precise, ripe and balanced
Wine can only ever be as good as the fruit that it comes from. We invest time in harvesting fruit that is ripe and balanced. Henri compares this delicate process to the experience of eating a pear: eat it a day too early and it will be dry and tart, wait a day too long and it will be too sweet, eat it at just the right moment, and you will experience the wonder of a perfectly balanced fruit, where sugar, acidity and tannins exist in harmony.
Unique personalities
At the Clos, we value the unique identities of each field, each grape, each vintage. Made from the same grape varieties (Grenache and Syrah), each of our reds express a different facet of the estate. Each plot is vinified separately, according to its altitude, soil and exposure, in order to express its full personality.
Low to no intervention at each stage
Once in the cellar, grapes are hand-sorted and lightly crushed before beginning their fermentation with indigenous yeasts. Always organic, we never use synthetic additives and sulfur levels are kept far below the organic label standards, while still ensuring the stability of our wines around the world.
Impressive potential to age
We favour long and gentle macerations for the red cuvées, which can sometimes last up to one month. This allows the full aromatic bouquet of the fruit to be expressed while bringing a roundness, depth and complexity to the wines, ready to be enjoyed now or in years to come.
Letting each terroir sing
Select cuvées, including the Carmin Brillant, Champvermeil and Lao Muse, are vinified in wooden truncated-cone vats. These large-sized vats allow natural micro-oxygenation to occur, bringing structure and suppleness to each wine. The wonderful aromas of Grenache are expressed without being overpowered by the oak, allowing each terroir to sing.
