Domaines Ott was founded in 1896 by Alsatian engineer Marcel Ott. Today, the wineries are owned and managed by Champagne Louis Roederer, producing some of the world’s most prestigious wines. These wines are made at three distinctively different estates in two different appellations: Château Romassan (Bandol), Clos Mireille, and Château de Selle (both Côtes de Provence).

Château Romassan is the third estate acquired by the Ott family in 1956, located in the Bandol appellation and lies at the foot of the village of Le Castellet. The Bandol appellation is known for its terraced vineyards of varying exposures. The 220 acres of vineyards are split between the Bandol appellation’s eight communes and planted on marl and limestone soils that are particularly well suited to Mourvèdre. They are composed of two main climates. The grapes grown in the valley offer fresh, crunchy juice whereas those grown at higher altitudes on the terraced hillsides produce wines with more body and structure.

Hand-harvested grapes are cooled overnight. The grapes are gravity-fed into concrete tanks for maceration. Daily pumping of the juice over the pomace cap. Aged for 18 months in French oak barrels, followed by 18 to 24 months in bottle—well beyond the Bandol appellation's regulations. 

This 2018 vintage presents a lovely ruby color and aromas of morello cherries and liquorice on the nose. The wine is soft and broad on entry to the palate revealing roasted aromas and a lovely fragrance of peppermint. Its lingering flavours are underpinned by lovely spicy notes. This powerful aromatic bouquet combined with silky tannins lends the wine a fresh, luscious character.

2018 is a vintage which, with its frosts, hail, summer storms and lack of wind, will remain engrained in our memories for a very long time. We had to remain vigilant at all times in order to deal with these complications efficiently and ensure that the growing cycle was able to continue in the right conditions. On tasting, the berries revealed less sugars than the previous years, but good balance nonetheless. Harvesting on all three estates kicked off on August 14th and was over by mid-September. Vinification gave rise to a fruity, ethereal and perfectly balanced vintage.