Domaine of the Bee 2021
- Retail
- £30.00
- Member
- £24.00
- Case
- £180.00
- Case (Member)
- £144.00
- Varieties
- Grenache Noir, Carignan
- Vintage
- 2021
- Country
- France
- Region
- Roussillon
- Alcohol
- 14.5%
- Bottle Size
- 750ml
- Drinking Window
- 2023 - 2035
Awards
- Award
- 96/100 -
- Event
- Sommelier Edit
- Year
- 2026
- Award
- 93/100 -
- Event
- The International Wine Challenge
- Year
- 2023
- Description
- Our Flagship red is made from our best barrels of Grenache and Carignan, and this vintage (and the previous two) have been classified as Maury Sec (before 2019 we classified our wine as Cotes du Roussillon Villages, or Cotes Catalanes). The vineyards are the same three blocks we have owned since 2006, the grapes taste the same, but we've upped the Grenache component to 60%, which is the minimum permissable for Maury Sec.
- Eyes
- The year's wine is a rich red - deeper coloured than the last couple of years, reflecting the riper vintage.
- Nose
- What a nose! An explosion of dense, plump, ripe dark fruit - layered mulberries, smoky plums, and wild garrigue. And a whiff of kirsch, and maybe chocolate.
- Mouth
- The palate is succulent and beguiling, with incredibly forward ripe fruit, and there's loads of grippy tannins too - svelte and finely textured, yet suggesting some protein-rich food to soak them up. This is one of the best vintages we have ever made - up there with 2008, 2011, 2015 and 2017.
- Body
- full
- Winemaking notes
- All our grapes for Domaine of the Bee were hand harvested, and then hand-sorted at the winery to ensure we only chose the healthiest and ripest grapes. The first Carignan to be picked is fermented in a stainless steel tank. The rest of the Carignan, and all of the Grenache is cold-macerated in upturned demi-muids (500L barrels) with the ends taken out, before being warmed up, inoculated with yeast, and gently punched down 2-3 times a day. After pressing, all of the wine was drained into a mixture of 500L and 225L barrels, approximately a quarter of which are new, and left to mature for 16 months.
- Growing Conditions
- An EXTREMELY cold January, with rare snow lying on the ground (briefly) marked the start of a year that was incredibly dry. Very low rainfall in a cool spring, and then a nice mini heatwave in June, but still very little rain. Two more heat spikes in mid July and late August, followed by September rains which finally allowed the vines a little moisture, and helped to swell the thick-skinned grapes. Most of the vineyards for our white and rosé were harvested before the rain, and most of our reds in a dry spell after the rainy spells. A good year for white and pinks, and a GREAT year for reds.
Reviews
Sommelier Edit
https://awards.sommelieredit.com/award-categories/wines-of-roussillon/May 14, 2026
Perfumed elegance. A delicate surprise after the mediterranean rusticity elsewhere. Notes of lavender, garrigue, rose. Blossom to full body, with broad textured mouth. The palate presents a pronounced intensity of farmyard, forest floor, wild blackberry, concentrated / juicy black cherry, charred cedar and pencil shaving. Very elegant wine. The finish is long. Best paired with tropical vegetable tagines, and charred meats. This is a complex wine deserving of a high score. 96/100 Champion Award: Best for Group Dining
The Wine Merchant Top 100
https://winemerchanttop100.com/July 25, 2024
"Herbal, garrigue nose, so fragrant, and delicious deep ripe fruit that has so much freshness - a minty kind of freshness which really stands out for this region" - Top 100 Award