La Vieille Ferme Rouge 375ml 2023

La Vieille Ferme Rouge 375ml is a half-bottle of the Perrin family's everyday Rhône red.

'The old farm' has been a Perrin family label since around 1970, made from southern Rhône vineyards near Mont Ventoux. The family's main estate is Château de Beaucastel in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, and the same attention to detail goes into this easy-drinking blend of Grenache, Syrah, Carignan and Cinsault. It is made to be enjoyed young. The 2023 is ruby-red and fresh, with cherry, blackberry, thyme and a touch of mint, then black fruit on a silky palate.

Ideal for a solo dinner or a picnic for two. Pour at around 15 degrees with a ham and cheese baguette, a lamb burger or ratatouille.

*Every effort is made to ensure the current vintage is accurate; however, variations can occur. If you are after a specific vintage, please contact us prior to ordering.

Type: Red Wine
Style: Dry, Medium-bodied, Easy-drinking
Grape Varietal: Grenache, Syrah (Shiraz), Carignan and Cinsault
Tastes Like: Comparable to a young, fruit-led Côtes du Rhône red
Alcohol Percentage: 13%
Closure: Screwcap
Size: 375mL
Appellation: Ventoux AOP (Appellation d'Origine Protégée, France's protected designation of origin, which sets where and how the wine is made)
Region: Ventoux, Southern Rhône, France
Terroir: Vineyards on the slopes of Mont Ventoux, the tallest mountain in Provence
Aging: Unoaked; made to be enjoyed young
Serving Temperature: Around 15℃

La Vieille Ferme, which means the old farm, has been made by the Perrin family since 1970. The same family owns Château de Beaucastel in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, bought in 1909 by Pierre Tramier and developed by his son-in-law Pierre Perrin and then by Pierre's son Jacques. The family began farming organically in 1950, and today the fifth generation runs its wines across the southern Rhône. La Vieille Ferme is their everyday range, made to be opened young and found on tables around the world.

This half bottle holds the family's Ventoux red: Grenache, Syrah, Carignan and Cinsault from the slopes of Mont Ventoux, blended for an easy, fresh style with no oak. At 375mL it is the right size for one or two glasses at a solo dinner, or to slip into a picnic basket, and like the full bottle it is best enjoyed young.

Picnic: Fougasse, tapenade and saucisson
Light meals: A lamb burger or a croque monsieur
Vegetables: Ratatouille or a vegetable tian
Pizza: Pizza with olives, anchovies and capers

Banon: The chestnut-leaf goat's cheese of Provence
Tomme de Savoie: A mild alpine cheese that suits a picnic
Saint-Nectaire: Soft and earthy, good with a light red
Gruyère: Sweet and nutty with a young Grenache blend

Tapenade Noire et Fougasse aux Olives (Black Olive Tapenade with Olive Fougasse)

Ingredients (Serves 4):

• For the Fougasse:
• 500g plain flour
• 7g sachet dried yeast
• 1 tsp salt
• 300mL warm water
• 3 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for brushing
• 100g pitted black olives, chopped
• 1 tsp dried herbes de Provence
• For the Tapenade:
• 200g pitted black olives
• 2 tbsp capers, rinsed
• 4 anchovy fillets
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 tsp thyme leaves
• Juice of ½ lemon
• 80mL extra virgin olive oil

Instructions:

1. Mix the flour, yeast and salt, then add the water and oil and knead for 8 minutes to a smooth dough. Knead in the chopped olives and herbs, cover and leave to rise for 1 hour.
2. Divide the dough in two and roll each piece into a leaf shape about 1.5cm thick on a lined tray. Cut slashes through the dough like the veins of a leaf and pull them open.
3. Rest for 20 minutes, brush with oil and bake at 220℃ for 18-20 minutes, until golden.
4. For the tapenade, blitz the olives, capers, anchovies, garlic, thyme and lemon juice to a coarse paste, then stir in the oil.
5. Tear the warm fougasse and serve with the tapenade.

Fougasse and tapenade are the snack of every Provençal market and bar, made for sharing with a glass of the local red. The olives, anchovies and capers are salty and savoury, and a light, fresh southern Rhône red with soft tannins meets them without any heaviness.