The Chaudiere family has created a vivacious, crisp white wine from grapes grown in the highest elevations of the foothills of the Ventoux in southern France. It is called Chateau Pesquie AOC Ventoux Blanc Terrasses 2022 ($17). The wine is creating shock waves in The Wide World of Wine because of its complexity and its ability to pair nicely with all the new and lighter types of cuisines now favored by today’s young connoisseurs.

Mont Ventoux is the highest peak in the Baronnies mountain group in the Southern French Prealps. Often called the “Giant of Provence” because of its towering presence, it is visible from any location.

 Over the last couple of decades, it has increasingly grown in importance as an incubator for innovative winemaking. The Chaudiere brothers, Frederic, and Alexandre, are among the vanguard of the new wine movement on the mountain.

 Nestled in the rolling foothills of the Ventoux are the lush vineyards of the Chateau Pesquie. Purchased by the Chaudiere family in 1971, two years before the Ventoux AOC was created, Chateau Pesquie came into being as a fully operational winery a decade later.

Trained as sommeliers, the founding couple began by selling grapes to the local wine cooperative. They created their own winery in 1990.

At the time, there were no significant wines coming out of the Ventoux. It wasn’t long before the Chaudière’s would change all of that.

Through their travels, the Chaudière’s learned from other winemakers and created their own memory bank of new ways to create wine. However, their most influential experience occurred in California. It was there that they learned of innovations that would prove to be invaluable to their new winery back home.

First they experimented with the use of barrel aging for their red wines. In 1990, this was not common in the Ventoux. At first, the estate’s enologist questioned the practice. “Why did you buy barrels?” he asked. “We’re in the Ventoux!”

After tasting the wine six months into the barrel aging process, he changed his mind and barrel aging for reds quickly became the norm. Over the next decade, a region known for creating light Cote-du-Rhone style wines became known for rich, flavorful wines of considerable complexity.

The Ventoux appellation has the perfect formula for creating exciting wines. Syrah and Grenache, the top producing native grapes, thrive. Cinsault, Mourvedre and Carignan, used in both Red and Rose blends, are as distinct here as they are in Provence.

Marsanne, Vermentino and Viognier, although in smaller quantities, are also grown with particular care.

White wines are playing an increasing role and presence in the Chateau Pesquie portfolio as consumer tastes change.  Young audiences who are new to wine are exploring exotic cuisines and lighter types of meals. They want to find wines that are compatible with their new foods choices, and the white wines of Chateau Pesquie are a perfect option.

Asian cuisine and dishes that incorporate a wide array of exotic spices and lighter types of meats and seafood are simpatico with the new wines released by Chateau Pesquie.

Vegetarian dishes, no longer the purvey of the Birkenstock-wearing crowd, have gained broad acceptance and popularity and are the perfect companions to the new white wine releases from Chateau Pesquie. The Wide World of Wine will be exploring more of these offerings in their portfolio in the coming weeks.

 Chateau Pesquie, under the guidance of the two Chaudiere brothers, has charted new territory in the production of their distinctive, crisp, full flavored white wines.

It is exactly the quality that sets Chateau Pesquie AOC Ventoux Terrasses 2022 ($17) apart from other white wines in the area.

Biodynamic farming is the guiding principle of the estate. All the grapes are grown organically and harvested by hand.

Chateau Pesquie Terrasses is a white wine created with a unique blend of Viognier, tempered with the crispness of Clairette and the creamy texture of Roussanne and Grenache Blanc.

Fermented and aged entirely in stainless steel tanks under strict temperature controls to preserve its classic floral and fruit flavors of pithy white peaches and nectarines, the wine has hints of bright citrus and a touch of Sage.

Informed by history and terroir, Chateau Pesquie sits just northeast of historic Avignon in France’s Rhone Valley. The centuries old trees and 18th century farmhouse belie the fact that the winery is part of the ‘new wave’ of winemaking in the region.

With its dizzying mix of soil types and varied microclimates, from warm Mediterranean to cool Alpine, it is the ideal place to create wines of distinction.

Terrasses is named from the parcels of grapes that grow along the slopes of the Ventoux about a thousand feet above sea level. The unique mix of Syrah grown in soils containing large pieces of broken limestone blended with grapes from an adjacent parcel of dark, pebbly alluvial soils, makes for a wine that possesses stark contrasts.

I tasted the wine with several entrees beginning with a flavorful Caesar salad replete with anchovies, garlic paste, and copious amounts of lemon squeeze, capers, anchovies, and Dijon mustard mashed with a small fork into a paste with Worcestershire and a coddled free-range organic egg. Despite the cascade of flavors, it turned out to be a perfect pairing with the Terrases.

The complex flavors of the salad brought out the ‘climant,’ that subtle sense of time and place that sets this wine apart from other white wines.

The wine’s firm structure gave it presence, which is unusual in a white wine.  Its bright acidity created a sensation in the mouth that gave flight to the wine’s pronounced citrus flavors of pineapple and Meyer lemon.

An Alfredo sauce with butter braised shrimp and tiny lobster tails with lightly steamed Snow Peas brought out the wine’s creamy texture and long finish.

Dessert of freshly picked Strawberries and a healthy pouring of farm fresh cream, complete with the clotted bits that collect at the rim, made this a delightful early spring treat!

At well under $20, Chateau Pesquie AOC Ventoux Blanc Terrasses 2022 is a perfect addition to any meal. Make it a spur-of-the-moment treat for yourself or a good friend. Visit chateaupesquie.com for more. Always drink responsibly.