Château Courac, Côtes-du-Rhône Villages Rouge, Laudun 2019
In case it hasn't found its way into your wine rack yet (it's a relatively new addition to our range), Château Couracs Laudun, from an up-and-coming Côtes du Rhône village, is very highly recommended indeed. In our humble opinion, its one of the best value wines you will find from the entire Rhône valley.
Tasted blind, you could easily place this in Châteauneuf-du-Pape - it is made in the same way, from the same principal grapes, and only 10 miles away as the Rhône crow flies, but is about half the price of most Châteauneuf.
This is a wine with huge presence - warm, luscious, rich bramble fruit and fine-grained tannins, all seasoned generously with Mediterranean herb notes, liquorice, and smoky spice.
- Ben Godfrey, Buyer of FromVineyardsDirect
What do the critics say?
Reviews of the previous vintage
"This is one of the best Côtes du Rhône reds I have ever tasted full-flavoured with an elegance and purity that belies its humble appellation. Located in the relatively unknown Laudun district, it is made predominantly from the Grenache grape with a small amount of Syrah and Mourvèdre, which are also used in Châteauneuf-du-Pape; its grander and more expensive neighbour. The 2015 vintage is one of the most successful in the entire Rhône Valley and while it is in perfect form now, will certainly continue to improve for a few more years."
Bruce Palling, Wine Editor of the Week
"The FVD team refer to it as their mini-Châteauneuf-du-Pape and I can well see why [...] full of plums, damsons and cherries with a touch of liquorice, chocolate and spice. It's nice to see a wine of such high quality/low price with some bottle age too."
Jonathan Ray, The Spectator
About the producer
Joséphine and Frédéric Arnaud took over this super property in 1995, and make wines of real warmth, generosity and purity of fruit. Set high in the hills above the village of Tresques (to the north-west of Châteauneuf-du-Pape) the Arnauds have 90 hectares of syrah and grenache vines from which they make their enduringly popular Laudun. Laudun itself is where the Romans first camped when they landed in the south of France - and they knew a thing or two about making wine!
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I am very much enjoying this wine. There is something very warm and comforting about it, with deep fruit tastes and a lovely colour. I am taking a bottle to my sister's at the weekend: she is more of a oenophile than I, so her opinion will be interesting. My 5* rating is based with price in mind; there will be superior wines at much greater prices.