Among our favorite of the Provençal rosé wines each year; fresh, bright, vivid with a gentle intensity of chalky berry flavor just bursting forth. Ah, bring on the heat, this one's got the cool to face it down.

Owned by the Quiot family of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Domaine Houchart is situated at the foot of Mont Saint-Victoire near Aix-en-Provence. The vineyard is planted to Grenache, Syrah, Carignan, Cinsault, Cabernet Sauvignon and Mourvèdre vines in coarsely textured soils of clay and limestone, a result of the decomposition of the bed rock of the surrounding mountains. The 2007 Côtes de Provence Rouge is ruby red in color, with aromas that would suggest dried cherries, sun-roasted herbs, pepper and pulverized limestone. Crisp and spicy and tantalizing on the tongue, expanding toward a gently structured richness of velvety texture and succulent, savory finish. Extra points here for value, too!

It is a great vintage for Tempier in the sense that the reds have quite a monumental quality, grand wines brimming with flavor, and they will obviously age almost forever. To compare them to something, trying to give you an idea of the vintage style, I’d look to really stunning Bordeaux vintages like 1945 or 1947. I mean, there is one hell of a lot of wine in these wines. ‑ Kermit Lynch, http://blog.kermitlynch.com/2009/07/07/july-newsletter-now-available-online/