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Xavier Vignon

★★★ Guide Bettane et Desseauve - NOTATION DOMAINE 2024
16.7/20
Rated by 1301 customers

Xavier Vignon is one of the most renowned oenologists in the Rhone wine region. He has worked as a consultant to more than 200 wineries in the Rhone Valley and has gained a worldwide reputation for his expertise and collaboration on the best wines of Châteauneuf-du-Pape . He started his own production in 2002, and the winery is now known for wines of exceptional quality... Read more

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A talent born under X

Eminent consultant in the Southern Rhône Valley, Xavier Vignon works with freedom and conviction in the world of wine.

Originally from Picardy in northern France, he devoted himself to his passion for wine at a very young age. In the course of his projects, wherever he goes, this tireless worker prospers while having fun. In his younger years, he followed his scientific course of study as an agricultural and biochemical engineer and passed the National Oenologist Diploma (DNO) with flying colours. He earned his first stripes in Bordeaux at Château Corbin-Michotte, a Grand Cru Classé in Saint-Émilion, and in Alsace, before extending his experience abroad, in California in the Napa Valley, in New Zealand at the prestigious Cloudy Bay winery and at Domaine Chandon in Australia.

Xavier Vignon travels the world and is enriched by his winegrowing adventures. On the strength of his experience, Moët & Chandon recruited him as soon as he returned to France to benefit from the know-how he had acquired in numerous foreign wineries. But despite the career opportunities offered in Champagne, he took up his independence in 1996, eager for freedom and above all determined to fulfil his penchant for the wines of the southern Rhône Valley.

Portrait de Xavier Vignon

Therefore Xavier settled in the Vaucluse at the foot of the Dentelles de Montmirail to begin a successful career as a consultant oenologist in France and abroad, mainly in Australia, South Africa and California. He forged a solid international reputation by providing expert advice to more than 200 estates and by participating in the elaboration of prestigious Rhône wines, notably in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, where he gradually implemented new working methods.

Discreet, in the shadow of many owners of prestigious estates, without ever putting himself forward, Xavier Vignon became highly respected by his peers. But somewhat weary of allowing the best wines to be offered through others, he gradually set his sights on producing and sharing his own cuvées. Today that ambition is a reality!

Pied de vignes et raisin blanc

A discreet wine maker who quickly made a name for himself

Driven by sharing and the desire to forge links, Xavier Vignon puts his talent to work to create his own style.

In the beginning, he designed the first cuvées for his friends in his garage.

That is how he makes his ideal wine, without any constraints of terroir or grape variety. Thanks to his privileged position and his experience, he has the opportunity to access wines from world-renowned estates that are not offered to traditional wine merchants. Selective and attentive, he blends the "juice" from carefully selected plots with other more confidential but equally qualitative wines.

All of this is only artisanal, with no commercial structure. Until the day when a well-intentioned winemaker discreetly sends his unlabelled samples to the Guide Hachette, which soon praises the wines. The alchemy works and Xavier takes to the game of blending.

In 2002, he began to market his own vintages discreetly signed "Xavier Vins". He left this business for a while to be able to carry out his two activities at the same time, as he accepted the challenge of taking over the management of the laboratory of the Institut Œnologique de Champagne in addition to his consulting activity.

Along the way, a friend, Jean-Pierre Hugues, suggested that he join forces to promote his creations in 2007: a way of strengthening the existing structure. Xavier then gave birth to a new range of wines that a certain Robert Parker was curious enough to taste. The famous critic gave his highest marks to these creations!

His deep knowledge of the terroirs of the Rhone Valley combined with his bold and visionary spirit are surfacing in the wine world and little by little, Xavier can no longer go unnoticed.

An ace in the blending game

Located in Châteauneuf-du-Pape and Beaumes-de-Venise, not far from renowned winemakers, Xavier is in the best position to make elegant wines in these southern Rhone lands.

An inexhaustible playground, it is here that he creates the most finely tuned blends: resulting from the combination of the different types of terroir in each appellation, he guarantees the best possible balance.

His mission: to reveal the best of each appellation.

It all starts with the vines: the selected wines are always made from old, low-yielding vines.

And the least we can say is that these unpretentious cuvées, from well-known estates as well as small properties, reveal their strengths!

The diversity of the Rhone Valley's terroirs, combined with the freedom offered by the small size of the structure, allows him a wide margin of manoeuvre in his creations.

When he is not extracting the quintessence of a terroir, since his range of wines can be found under the Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Côtes-du-Rhône, Gigondas, Cairanne, Vacqueyras, Rasteau, Ventoux, Muscat Beaumes-de-Venise and Beaumes-de-Venise, he blends different vintages and appellations to produce Vin de France with a disconcerting liberty in view of the quality of the cuvées.

Xavier Vignon certainly blends, but adds a touch of modernity to the sincere expression of Rhodanian terroirs.

Each cuvée is the result of meticulous work and rigorous selection.

Gentle extraction, limitation of inputs to the strict minimum: nothing to complain about, the respect for the fruit is there!

He competes with talent in the precision of the maturation and the sublimation of Grenache, his favourite grape variety.

Creative cuvées, each bearing the expert's signature, make Xavier Vignon a unique phenomenon in the wine world.

Jeu de Cartes avec les Arcanes Xavier Vignon

Privy to many secrets

As you can see, Xavier Vignon likes to remain discreet and keeps his manufacturing secrets. What counts is the content of the bottle and the pleasure of tasting it.

These blends of impeccable quality, without reaching the price of the great estates from which they come, and whose names are never disclosed, could pass for "Unidentifiable Viticultural Objects".

Xavier even plays with it by cultivating a veil of mystery through the names of some of his cuvées: "Anonymous" or those of the Arcane saga "le Diable" (the devil), "La Lune" (the moon) and " Le Soleil" (the sun) referring to the Tarot cards.

A world of games, a mystery of creation, Xavier Vignon takes malicious pleasure in blending and proves that he has many assets. His way of proceeding is innovative in the world of wine, almost visionary because it opens up the field of possibilities while respecting the appellations, out of love for the grapes. A certain grain of madness and a lot of audacity!

Whether the wines are from great estates or more confidential ones, he knows how to keep the origin secret in order to highlight only the nobility of the fruit, the concentration of the aromas, the power and balance.

A requirement that is now the signature of a well-defined style.

The caveau Du Beaumes Au Coeur, located in Beaumes-de-Venise, is now known throughout the world for its wines of exceptional quality. Several tens of thousands of bottles are sent abroad each year... Needless to say, the interested parties have made a great choice!

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Delivery starting from 21/11/2024