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Chateau Simone

Chateau Simone is Palette; Palette is Chateau Simone. Well, more or less. The tiny appellation of Palette, one of France’s oldest, having been established in 1948, covers just 43 hectares. About fifteen of these are Chateau Simone, and much of the rest is pine forest with no likelihood of any deforestation in the near future; beyond Simone there are just a handful of other domaines and a co-operative or two. The Simone estate was planted in the 16th century by the Carmelite sisters, who also excavated the cellars. The property took on the name Simone from a later owner, but since the 17th century has been home to the Rougier family. Currently in charge are René and Jean-François, the seventh and eighth generations of this dynasty; René also heads up the local syndicat (growers' union).

The vineyards are dominated by Grenache and Mourvèdre, which make up the majority of the red cuvée. These two varieties, together with Cinsaut, are the cépages principaux which must constitute at least 50% of a blend; at Simone a typical blend would be 45% Grenache, 30% Mourvèdre and 5% Cinsaut. The remaining 20% would be the cépages secondaires, an eclectic bunch of varieties including foreigners such as Cabernet Sauvignon, the southern varieties Carignan, Syrah and Durif (otherwise known as Petite Sirah), and esoteric rarities including Manosquin, Muscat Noir and Castet.

Chateau Simone also gives us rosé and white wines, the former following the same blending regulations as for the reds, the latter principally Clairette (there is a 55% minimum here), and the cépages secondaires are just as complex as for the red wines, led by familiar names such as Ugni Blanc, Grenache Blanc, Muscat, Picpoul (as in Picpoul de Pinet) and Colombard, and followed by the more esoteric southern variety Terret Bouret and the entirely unfamilar Pascal and Aragnan.

The red wine of Chateau Simone is an idiosyncratic affair, made from largely destemmed berries fermented in stainless steel or cement, before spending up to 18 months in foudres followed by a year in barriques. The wine is fined before bottling, but not filtered. The style demands time in the cellar rather than being one for immediate enjoyment. There is a rosé of good reputation, a more substantial wine than many other local rosés, with more grip and body, more akin to Domaine Tempier’s example perhaps. There is no malolactic here with the rosé or indeed with the white wine, which sees eighteen months in barriques sourced from top Bordeaux chateaux. (18/4/05)

Contact details:
Address: 13590 Meyreuil
Telephone: +33 (0) 4 42 66 92 58
Fax: +33 (0) 4 42 66 80 77
Internet: www.chateau-simone.fr

Chateau Simone - Tasting Notes

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Chateau Simone Palette Rouge 2002: Bottle number 002813. From a half bottle the wine currently shows plenty of red pigment and is still convincingly youthful. The nose immediately displays a layer of rich fruit with a warm, spiced, lightly baked character. Starting off a touch fuzzy and confused, it soon hunkers down and smoothes out, showing a tighter fruit character with time, tinged with a faint whisp of tobacco. The palate is rich but dry with a thin seam of bitterness running through it, a touch reminiscent of burnt coffee, although with a sweet and fleshy character which reminds me somewhat of Musar. Dry at its core, with good grip and nice acids, this wine certainly makes up for its rustic lack of finesse with plenty of character. I suspect, looking at this wine's structure and extract, it still has plenty of give in the cellar too. Good potential here. For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 16+/20 (August 2010)

Chateau Simone Palette Rosé 2001: A moderately deep pink hue, with quite some vibrancy. This is no vin gris. Leafy, liquorice-laced summer fruit pudding on the nose. Fairly rounded palate, somewhat soft and unfocused on entry, and in need of some verve and sharper acidity. But the flavours are good, mirroring the nose, and they flourish and reveal more through the midpalate. Plenty of body and a good, grippy, perhaps alcohol-influenced feel to the finish. Decent stuff indeed. 15.5/20 (March 2005) Label

Chateau Simone Palette Rouge 1997: From a half bottle. Good colour, showing some maturity. The nose takes some time to open up, as the palate does to soften, but it does yield aromas of liquorice and leather. Quite austere at first, with firm tannins, but the texture fills out to give a stylish weight with good balance, showing a good tannic backbone. Animalistic, roasted flavour. Very enjoyable. The structure cries out for food at present, and was fine with slow-roasted lamb, but the wine will integrate and improve over the next eight to ten years in the cellar. Good 16.5+/20 (March 2005) Label