Domain de l'Oratoire St-Martin
“This is possibly the best domaine in the entire Côtes du Rhône-Villages area. The wines are full, intense and concentrated, surprisingly sophisticated. At less than half the price of a top Châteauneuf this domaine offers splendid value for money.” Clive Coates
"Domain de l'Oratoire St-Martin is one of the Southern Rhone Valley's most conspicuous overachievers, making wines that are far above their humble appellations. All of their wines go into the bottle with no filtration and only a light fining. This is the type of estate that brings smiles to consumers who happen upon their wines. They are reasonably priced and qualitatively equivalent to wines selling at two or three times the price.” Robert Parker
The vineyards of Oratoire St Martin are hand tended and managed organically with biodynamic preparations. The vineyards are regularly ploughed, with some plots by horse. This is a costly, time consuming and difficult practice that offers a range of benefits over using a tractor for the same purpose. Very low crops also play their part, with the Oratoire vineyards typically yielding less than 30hl/ht on average. In the winery large wooden foudres are the norm as well as two egg shaped fermenters (one concrete, one in wood) and a gravity fed cellar allows the fruit to be handled gently. There are no additions and very little sulphur is used. What truly makes these wines so good is the Alary family’s fantastic vineyard holdings high up on the hill behind Cairanne and the continuous ownership of these sites adds to the quality factor - they have been in the Alary family's hands since the 1600s. Most southern Rhône wines come from vineyards on the flats whilst Oratoire’s are on the slopes near Rasteau and look out to Gigondas and down at Châteauneuf du Pape. They have a soil profile rich in limestone and clay which lends elegance and complexity to these full bodied, powerful reds.
The large proportion of old-vine Mourvèdre in the Cairanne villages blends is almost unique these days, giving their wines greater density, complexity, structure and ability to age. While many producers have grafted over their Mourvèdre (they felt the variety was too temperamental) the Alary brothers have planted more and have shown what can be achieved with this wonderful variety in the right sites and with the right handling. Now other growers are starting to replant Mourvedre! There is a very high proportion of old vine fruit in the vineyards, with most vines between 60-100 years old. The wines of Oratoire St Martin offer remarkable value and should not be missed by those seeking authentic, old vine, full bodied reds at very fair prices.
In Oratoire we offer you arguably the finest producer in Cairanne. If you accept the often heard claim that Cairanne is the supreme Village in the Côtes du Rhône (and we do!) then you know we are offering something special. In short, these are delicious and very naturally made wines that offer outstanding value year-in year-out.
