This is no ordinary Provençal rosé: the estate has a deep and illustrious past. The Knights of Templar founded Commanderie de Peyrassol in 1204, however, there is evidence that the site has been settled since the Iron Age. The first recorded wine harvest of the Commanderie was in 1256 and its viticultural and agricultural tradition has continued, more or less, since that time. Throughout this property’s astonishing history, there have been just 3 owners; since 2001 the custodian is Philippe Austruy – with his nephew Alban Cacaret – who makes it his business to “awaken sleeping beauties”, restoring wine estates to their former glory, or recognising and unearthing their full potential.

Standing above the village of Flassans-sur-Isole, in the heart of the hills of the Var, the Commanderie de Peyrassol (a commanderie is a district under the control of a commander of an order of knights) is an expansive, rolling 950 hectares, where vines, olive trees, white oaks, truffle oaks and garrigue form a carefully protected eco-system, welcoming remarkable biodiversity. 95 hectares of this land are planted to vineyards.

Thanks to its outstanding natural location, the Commanderie de Peyrassol was once a favoured staging post and a historical place of rest for pilgrims on their way to the Holy Land; today it is one of the high spots of wine tourism in France, not only for its stunning surroundings and renowned wines, but also for its matchless collection of contemporary monumental sculptures and its elegant guest accommodation.

The Triassic clay-limestone soil of the estate has a high proportion of gravel and is an ideal terroir for rosés. Austruy and Cacaret grow very typical regional grape varieties – Cinsault, Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Tibouren, Rolle and Ugni Blanc – and create more full-bodied styles of wine, in order to best express the terroir. Sowing cereals in between the rows, improving the quality of the soil, plot selection, and manual harvesting on the oldest plots, they take the utmost care of their vineyards in order to get the very best out of the vines. They began the conversion of the property to chemical-free viticulture in 2019.

For distribution in the UK.

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