Hecht & Bannier are a négociant winery based in the southern French town of Aix-en-Provence. Since 2002, they’ve released several excellent red wines. However, it’s their rosé program that is getting noticed, and for excellent reasons. They produce three bottlings of rosé. The least expensive and simplest is their Languedoc offering. Their Bandol is their top bottling, which is not surprising: Bandol is the epicenter of pink wine production in France.
The Wine School favorite — for quality and value– is this bottling from Cotes de Provence. While the wine is sourced from multiple vineyards, they all resided in the Montagne Sainte-Victoire region, east of Hecht & Bannier’s winery. All the fruit is night harvested, so the grapes come into the crush pad cool, allowing for a brief but cold maceration. The wine is half Cinsault, with the rest a combination of Syrah and Grenache, which are co-fermented.
The palate is bright cherry with a juicy melon undercurrent with a nose of fresh tarragon and red fruit. The texture is zesty with just enough texture to give the deep fruit flavors some dimension. The finish keeps the fruit coming. Salted peach, pear, and a closing note of honeysuckle.
This is a spring and summer standby, perfect for lounging on the deck.