Oxymore Shiraz Grenache 2019

Oxymore’s story starts only back in 2019, however Thomas Farge’s winemaking history dates back a few generations. During the harvest of 2019, Thomas noted that the vintages were continuing to get hotter in the last decade and with that alcohol levels were rising. He set himself the task to reduce the impacts of climate change that the French Wine industry faced. He looked toward a prominent spearhead for organic and biodynamic viticulture: Stéphane Usseglio, the current owner of Domaine Raymond Usseglio, they met for lunch, sharing each other’s wines, and whilst discussing the important topics of viticulture winemaking, they decided to create a cuvèe together, and alas Oxymore was born. 

Due to the blending of multiple sub-regions of the Rhône, they had to label their wine Vin de Pay, but don’t let this generic name fool you, Thomas and Stephenne have put some of their best fruit forward, to create an exquisite blend, showcasing what the Rhone has to offer. The blend is 65% Thomas Farge’s sixty years old Syrah, planted on shallow granite slopes, 30% Stéphane Usseglio’s sixty years old grenache planted on sandy soils and 5% of Stéphane’s counoise planted on pebbles soils over a bed of red clay. Each variety has undergone it’s own unique winemaking techniques to allow for each grape’s terrior and typicity to shine through. See Jeb Dunnuck’s review below for more on this stunning wine.