{"id":9210,"date":"2013-08-15T17:53:26","date_gmt":"2013-08-15T17:53:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.leaandsandeman.co.uk\/blog\/?p=9210"},"modified":"2013-08-15T18:49:22","modified_gmt":"2013-08-15T18:49:22","slug":"la-grele-rose-a-tale-of-devastation-to-delight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.leaandsandeman.co.uk\/blog\/2013\/08\/la-grele-rose-a-tale-of-devastation-to-delight\/","title":{"rendered":"2012 La Gr\u00eale Ros\u00e9 – Ch\u00e2teau de Roquefort: A tale of devastation to delight!"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"2012-LA-GRELE-Rose-Chateau-de-Roquefort-Lea<\/a><\/div>\n

\u00a0La Gr\u00eale Ros\u00e9<\/a><\/strong> – Ch\u00e2teau de Roquefort:<\/strong><\/span> \u00a312.95<\/strong> Btl or \u00a311.95<\/strong> case price<\/p>\n

Lovers of Burgundy will be aware that the 2012 vintage, already not looking large, was decimated by hailstorms producing a reportedly minuscule vintage. Hail has struck again in 2013, storms at the end of July have wreaked havoc in the C\u00f4te de Beaune with some producers fearing up to 60% of their production wiped-out.<\/p>\n

Charlie Lea blogged recently<\/a> about the hailstorm at\u00a0Domaine Sainte Lucie<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0Domaine des Diables<\/strong> <\/span>in Provence that threatens an ominous shortage of MiP* Ros\u00e9 next year.\u00a0Guillaume Philip the owner tells us that the prognosis is not quite as bad as first feared as many of the damaged berries have managed to heal and should continue to harvest in reasonable health. MiP* will still be in short supply but, then again, it always is.<\/p>\n

For fellow Proven\u00e7al ros\u00e9 producer\u00a0Raimond de Villeneuve<\/strong><\/span>, owner of Ch\u00e2teau de Roquefort<\/strong>, hail in 2012 produced the ultimate in devastation but, then, gave rise to a heart-warming story of human decency, fraternity and community spirit. First the devastation, in Raimond’s words:<\/p>\n

‘It all began on 1st July last at about 7 o’clock in the evening with an unexpected hailstorm of barbaric violence! In a mere 7 minutes this wall of ice completely devastated everything growing in the vineyard…not a leaf or a single bunch remained; nothing survived the bombardment. I can still see myself running backwards and forwards through the vines, up to my knees at times in streams of hailstones, petrified, blue with cold. Shrouds of white mist were rising from the tons of ice lying on the still warm ground. When I had completed the tour of our 24ha of vines, I knew there wouldn’t be the faintest chance of harvesting anything…I knew that time would be required for the vines to recover from such a severe onslaught, I felt like somebody shipwrecked in the middle of nowhere!<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

In the days that followed, winegrowing friends who live nearby came to look at the extent of the damage, and were appalled…I can still hear them exclaiming, “Putain, Raimond, you’ve got nothing left!<\/em>‘<\/span><\/p>\n

Referring to the fact that, not only was the 2012 harvest wiped out, but the vines would not recover sufficiently to yield a full crop in 2013, Raimond claims he lost 150% of the harvest. To add insult to injury, because hail is quite rare in this part of Provence Raimond had no insurance.<\/p>\n