Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe is a

winery A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the cultivation and production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feat ...

in the southern Rhône wine region, from the

appellation An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication used to identify where the ingredients of a food or beverage originated, most often used for the origin of wine grapes. Restrictions other than geographical boundaries, s ...

Châteauneuf-du-Pape Châteauneuf-du-Pape (; ) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. The village lies about to the east of the Rhône and north of the town of Avignon. A ruined medieval castle s ...

. The estate is a producer of red and white wine and estimated among the district's leading properties.

History

Vines were initially planted on the Plateau de la Crau by Hippolyte Brunier in 1898, between the villages of

Bédarrides Bédarrides (; Provençal: ''Bedarrida'') is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Name The settlement is attested as ''villa Betorrida'' in 814, ''Biturrita'' in 898, ''Bistur ...

, Châteauneuf and Courthezon, establishing the core of the present day

vineyard A vineyard ( , ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines. Many vineyards exist for winemaking; others for the production of raisins, table grapes, and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is kno ...

of Vieux Télégraphe. There were expansions made over the following years, predominantly by the son Jules Brunier, who saw the vineyard extend nearly 17 hectares, and gave the estate its name, which he derived from a

semaphore line An optical telegraph is a line of stations, typically towers, for the purpose of conveying textual information by means of visual signals (a form of optical communication). There are two main types of such systems; the semaphore telegraph whic ...

tower that once stood in the vineyard. Following the

phylloxera Grape phylloxera is an insect pest of grapevines worldwide, originally native to eastern North America. Grape phylloxera (''Daktulosphaira vitifoliae'' (Fitch 1855) belongs to the family Phylloxeridae, within the order Hemiptera, bugs); orig ...

crisis, the task of rebuilding the property went to the next generation, in Henri Brunier, who eventually passed the estate on to his own sons, Daniel and Frederic, in 1986. Additionally the Bruniers run the estates La Roquette, and in Gigondas, Les Pallières.

Production

The vineyard area extends 70 hectares, composed of the

grape varieties This list of grape varieties includes cultivated grapes, whether used for wine, or eating as a table grape, fresh or dried (raisin, currant, sultana). For a complete list of all grape species, including those unimportant to agriculture, see ''V ...

of 65%

Grenache Grenache (; ) or Garnacha () is one of the most widely planted red wine grape varieties in the world. Niels Lillelund: ''Rhône-Vinene'' p. 25, JP Bøger – JP/Politikens Forlagshus A/S, 2004. . It ripens late, so it needs hot, dry condi ...

, 15%

Syrah Syrah (), also known as Shiraz, is a dark-skinned grape variety grown throughout the world and used primarily to produce red wine. In 1999, Syrah was found to be the offspring of two obscure grapes from southeastern France, Dureza and Mondeuse ...

, 15%

Mourvèdre Mourvèdre (; also known as Mataro or Monastrell) is a red wine grape variety grown in many regions around the world. It is found in the Rhône and Provence regions of France, the Valencia and Jumilla, Bullas and Yecla '' denominaciones de or ...

, and the remaining 5% consisting of

Cinsaut Cinsaut or Cinsault ( , ) is a red wine grape whose heat tolerance and productivity make it important in Languedoc-Roussillon and the former French colonies of Algeria, Lebanon, and Morocco. It is often blended with grapes such as Grenache an ...

and some white varieties including

Grenache Blanc Grenache blanc (; also known as garnatxa blanca in Catalonia) is a variety of white wine grape that is related to the red grape Grenache. It is mostly found in Rhône wine blends and in northeast Spain. Its wines are characterized by high alcohol ...

, Clairette,

Roussanne Roussanne () is a white wine grape grown originally in the Rhône wine region in French wine, France, where it is often blended with Marsanne. It is the only other white variety, besides Marsanne, allowed in the northern Rhône appellation d'Orig ...

and

Bourboulenc Bourboulenc is a white wine grape variety primarily grown in southern France. The variety is found in the regions Southern Rhône, Provence and Languedoc. Bourboulenc is a late-ripening grape variety with tight bunches of large grapes, that can ...

. The ''Grand vin'' is the red Vieux Télégraphe, while a

second wine Second wine or second label (French: ''Second vin'') is a term commonly associated with Bordeaux wine to refer to a second label wine made from '' cuvee'' not selected for use in the ''Grand vin'' or first label. In some cases a third wine or e ...

is named Vieux Mas des Papes, containing wine from younger vines. In the 2002 vintage no ''Grand vin'' was released, only a label named Télégramme was produced, which has remained the name of the second wine in some markets. A white wine Vieux Télégraphe is also produced, with a second white also named Vieux Mas des Papes. ''

The Wine Advocate ''The Wine Advocate'', fully known as ''Robert Parker's Wine Advocate'' and informally abbreviated ''TWA'' or ''WA ''or more recently as ''RP'', is a bimonthly wine publication based in the United States featuring the consumer advice of wine cri ...

'' rated the 2007 Vieux Télégraphe at 96 points.

References

External links

Vignobles Brunier official site
* {http://www.viajesyvinos.com/Viajes_vinos_vinos-vieuxtelegraphe_files_files.htm Los codigos de Vieux Telegraphe] {{DEFAULTSORT:Domaine Du Vieux Télégraphe 1891 establishments Former buildings and structures in France Wineries of France Vineyards

History

Production

See also

References

External links