Producer · Rhone, France

Moulin des Chênes

Moulin des Chênes is a 25-hectare estate in Lirac, in the southern Rhône. Laurent Bréchet, of Château de Vaudieu, runs it. He took it over with his brother Julien when the owner retired.

The brothers had long believed in Lirac. It sits just over the river from Châteauneuf-du-Pape, and it has the same long, sunny, dry summers and the same big round stones over red clay. The Mistral is just a little gentler here.

Their red blends Syrah, Cinsault, Mourvèdre and Grenache, aged in concrete vats underground. It is soft, generous and fruity, ready to drink sooner, and good value next to Châteauneuf.

Syrah, Cinsault, Mourvèdre and Grenache · £17.49 a bottle