Cinsault & Grenache, Rhône Valley, France

When Vivino says, “this is very tasty for such a light wine,” we know we have a winner. After a stint in economics, Dj-ing, and wine retail in the US, Martin Texier felt the call of his roots and returned to the Rhône valley where his infamous father Eric Texier has been producing incredible natural wine for decades. Martin works 5 hectares in and around the tiny commune of St.-Julien-en-St.-Alban, planted to classic Rhône varieties, both red and white. He’s big into tradition - really focussing on lesser known, old local grapes like Cinsault for reds and Clairette for whites, using organic viticulture and zero additions in his winemaking. That’s right! This gem is ‘zero-zero’, which means no sulphur was added at any stage. Le Preyna is the name of an old parcel planted with 75% Cinsault and 25% Grenache in deep granitic soils. The grapes are pressed and fermented separately in concrete tanks and blended before bottling. If this is considered an ‘every day’ wine in the region, can we all please move there?! We would drink this pleasure house full of rustic, lightly hedonistic charm every day. Underripe blueberry, perfectly juicy raspberries plucked in the cover of night after spending all day warming in the sun. Violet and lavender filled air at dusk. A lone peppercorn freed from your back molar in the hours after dinner provide a touch of late-night spice. This is the bottle that gives you a little extra courage for moonlit swims in your ‘birthday suit’.