$32.99 with shipping included on 6 bottles or more

70% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre  

Mas des Flauzières is a small family farm located at the site of an medieval wine estate at the foot of gigantic Mont Ventoux, the 6263 feet behemoth that dominates Provence to its south and is often a top category climb in the Tour de France. The Flauzieres vines are terraced along the base of the mountain at an unusually high altitude for grapes in the Southern Rhone.  Since 1919 the farm has been owned by the Benoit family, the current generation of whom is Jerome, a trained agronomist and enologist who joined the family business back in 2002.  He’s a master farmer and an accomplished winemaker who makes just two cuvees from his Gigondas vines.  Of the two, we loved the intensely fruited and nicely structured 1500-case production of Four d’Anuga.  Based on Grenache from vines as old as 70 and Syrah and Mourvedre closer to 30, Benoit, in his youth, was a rugby player, and there’s a bit of the rough-and-ready of the rugby pitch in this chunky but really fun wine, a gentle giant that features a deep core of the plummy cherry fruit that is the signature of old vine Grenache.  What sets this wine apart, though, are the tapenade, licorice, black pepper and white and purple floral aromatics that come from the Mourvedre and Syrah.  They jump from the glass in this personality-laden, effusive Southern Rhone beauty that really packs a flavor punch.   A judicious application of oak adds a bit of texture and roundness that tempers the wine’s mountain rusticity and helps make it a complete drink even now.  Its sunny personality and impressive depth would be great with a rack of ribs off the grill, a long-cooked beef daube or a cassoulet.  But, really, why not just pop a bottle tonight with whatever looks good?  There’s a lot of wine here for the money!    Drink now or cellar for the next six to ten years.  

Jeb Dunnuck: The deep ruby-hued 2023 Gigondas Four Danuga checks in as a blend of 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah, and the rest Mourvèdre. With rocking framboise, pepper, sweet flower, and incense-driven aromatics, this beauty hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, a pure, graceful mouthfeel, ripe tannins, and a great finish. It has a kiss of modern character with its purity and subtle oak, but it's still a classic Gigondas that has so much to love. 94 points