Domaine des Côteaux des Travers, Rasteau

"Robert Charavin produces some of the best examples from this Rhône village which is now a candidate for its own appellation" (Wine Behind the Label)

We keep returning to this estate which is quietly producing some fabulous wines. One of the very first people we worked with, Robert Charavin's wines were good enough in the nineties but he has still found room for improvement over the last few years. Now his red wines are some of the very best of the village: no mean feat given the soaring reputation of the top estates (including Bressy-Masson). Robert's 2005s are probably the best he has ever made.

The 13 hectare estate (9 in Rasteau, 4 in Cairanne) was established by Robert's grandfather Elie in 1931 although Charavins have been producing wine in Rasteau for over a century. The name of the estate, Côteaux des Travers, means "the side of the rising sun": vineyards are situated on hills with exceptional exposure to the sun.

Wines are made from vines averaging 40 years cultivated traditionally with limited use of herbicides. In recent years, a little more oak has been used in the ageing of the wines although in all but the top cuvées this is apparent only in the texture, not in the flavour of the bottled wine.