Clos Cibonne 2024 Tibouren Cuvee Tradition Rose, Cotes de Provence, France

You’ll notice the current release of this Provence classic is a year older than all the other rosés we’re bringing in the store this year.  The reason is that the unconventional Tibouren (a local rosé variety) spends a year in 100 year old barrels covered by flor to protect it from oxidizing.  As a result, the wine drinks more like a fine white wine than a typical fresh, light and lively rosé.  The color is different, too, a light copper hue.  About 10% of this wine is Grenache which I suspect adds a hint of freshness to it.  The result is an original work that is absolutely delicious to drink.

“The 2024 Rosé Cuvée Tradition is a wild, exotic wine. Aged sous-voile in foudre for one year, this blend of 90% Tibouren and 10% Grenache unleashes a heady array of beeswax, stewed peach, chamomile, toasted bread and wild herbs. It’s a waxy, enveloping, utterly distinctive Rosé that is very much on the cerebral side, and also pushing the limits of VA. Quite honestly, the Tradition is unlike anything else I’ve ever tasted. Readers who haven’t tasted these wines before owe it to themselves to do so.”--Billy Norris, Vinous