This small château is located near the town of Saint-Gilles just west of the Rhône River some 5 miles from the Mediterranean Sea. It is owned an operated by the Cornut family — Sylvia is the oenologist, with her husband François and their two sons tending to the vineyards. The rocky soils here are reminiscent of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, and the fruit is always picked late, ensuring deep and profound wines with soft tannins. François is meticulous in his viticultural practices and is a believer in sustainable agriculture, using no synthetic herbicides, pesticides or fertilizers on any of his vineyards or crops. Sylvia and the boys take over in the winery (the boys work a lot) where she ferments all fruit separately in stainless steel tanks by varietal and by vineyard site. This 2010 Mas de Guiot is a blend of hand-harvested Grenache and Syrah fruit; very primary aromas of fleshy ripe grapes and grape pomace (imagine that!), with suggestion of blue plum, kirsch and a good healthy winegrowing earth; just full and fruity and round on the tongue with nice crisp bright acids and supple tannins lending the gentlest astringency and keeping things refreshing and vibrant to the long and flavorful finish. At its ultra-attractive price, this is real value for those of us hard-working central Texans who enjoy really good wine but who may, from time to time, need their wine dollars to stretch on out a bit.

In wine circles, at the very least, the Roussillon is attracting a good deal of attention of late. For if it is, as variously described, a violent and savage land, blown dry by the howling tramontane winds, it is also a land of very divergent soils: schist to give the wine a solar touch, gneiss for minerality and freshness, and then limestone and chalk for strength and balance — brilliant winegrowing soils all at the very convergence of sea and sky in the shadow of the supernal Pyrenées Orientales and overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. This 2009 Côtes du Roussillon Les Vignes de Bila-Haut is, in our humble estimation, superb: deep soil inflected aromas suggestive of, among myriad other delicious things, macerated ripe black cherries and a dusting of pulverized stone; powerful and compelling on the tongue with fine, crisp tannins transporting a finely concentrated flavor long, finishing with a warmth and generosity not unlike some of its neighbors north and east in the southern Rhône. This is one satisfying drink of red wine!

Produce of 40% Syrah, 40% Carignan and 20% Grenache, hand-harvested from low-yielding old vines growing on black schist soils near Maury; expressive aromas of red fruits, flower and spice; supple on entry, then shows a delicate grip of fine-grained tannins that give gentle structure and transport delicate spice and red berry flavors long on the mouthwatering finish.