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Domaine de Ravanes

Domaine de Ravanes is located near Thézan-les-Béziers and is the property of Marc Benin. Marc's father, Guy Benin, was a fourth generation vigneron who was working in Algeria as a négociant when, in 1955, he purchased Domaine de Ravanes. For the first decade Guy managed the estate from across the Mediterranean and there was little of interest happening at Domaine de Ravanes. The vineyards were full of dull, high-yielding varieties, and the wine went to the local co-operative. It was the 1970s before the seeds of change were sown, when Marc, a Bordeaux obsessive, began replacing most of these southern varieties with Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Marc Benin has fashioned a good reputation for Domaine de Ravanes with his selection of Bordeaux-style cuvées. The Gravières du Taurou is produced from a parcel of old Merlot vines, the wine seeing some oak maturation in second-year barrels sourced from Pauillac. The Prime Verd is a 100% Petit Verdot cuvée, produced only in better vintages. This has turned out to be a revolutionary wine, stimulated neighbouring vignerons to also plant this variety. Completing the Bordeauxesque triumvirate is Diogène, a blend of about 70% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Petit Verdot, which sees up to 30 months in new Bordeaux barriques. Other cuvées include Cinq Seaux d’Oeillade, a 100% Cinsaut cuvée made from a parcel of old vines affected by the poorly understood vine disease Court Noué, which as a result give very low yields. The grapes areharvested late and macerated for two days on their skins prior to fermentation. The result is impressive and interesting. Marc Benin also produces two sweet white wines, these being a late harvest (labelled as vendange tardive until an Alsatian vigneron took Benin to court over the matter) moelleux called Le Chapitre and a botrytised wine called L'Ille. Curiously, given Benin's predilection for Bordeaux, these are both made from Ugni Blanc. (27/9/04)

Contact details:
Address: 34490 Thézan-les-Béziers

Domaine de Ravanes - Tasting Notes

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Domaine de Ravanes 'Les Gravières de Taurou' Grande Réserve (VdP des Coteaux de Murviel) 2000: A very dark hue in the glass, rich and deeply coloured, with an almost impenetrable core and a luxuriant oxblood rim. Very open and perfumed on the nose, this is one of those wines where the aromas leap up out of the glass, coming to you rather than waiting for you to come to them. It kicks off with a seam of spicy, roasted meats alongside some sweet fruit, later evolving into a slightly raisined character, with a suggestion of sur-maturité which thankfully is at a very low level, not dominating the palate. There is black liquorice too, as well as smoky forest fires, slightly pruney fruit cake and a tinge of green peppercorn. The palate has a restrained substance, just a little touch of creaminess but not over the top, backed up by spicy-peppery fruit through the middle and finish, with plenty of sweetness here behind the somewhat coarse tannins. Sweet texture, but also maturity, through the finish. From my 2000 vintage Ten Years On tasting. 17/20 (November 2010)

Domaine de Ravanes 'Les Gravières de Taurou' Grande Réserve (VdP des Coteaux de Murviel) 1998: A wonderful deep colour, with little sign of maturity. Quite opaque. Some ethyl acetate on the nose at first - a Ravanes trademark - but this soon dissipates. What remains is a beautiful melding of smoky, stony, black olive and violet-infused blackcurrant fruit. Richly textured palate, full of extract, a wealth of sweet, ripe, elegant fruit and plenty of grip. Delightfully ripe tannins, Super balance. A wine of very high quality indeed. Drink this over the next ten to fifteen years. 17.5/20 (September 2004)

Domaine de Ravanes Cuvée Diogène (VdP des Coteaux de Murviel) 1997: A moderate depth of colour, deep at the core, with a transparent red rim. The nose is elegant and welcoming, with obviously sweet violets dominating in quite an evocative and open style. An attractive weight, full and quite broad, with plenty of structure. Elegant and appealing flavours of dark, spicy berry fruits carried along by a fresh and peppery rather light and lifted palate. This has real style. Very good indeed. From a tasting of the 1997 Vintage at ten years of age. 17.5+/20 (December 2007)

Domaine de Ravanes 'L'Ille' 1997: A cuvée of nobly rotten fruit. A burnished orange-gold hue. Baked fruit on the nose, with some sweet, heavy marmalade character, opening out into a fresh, vibrant, medicinal, lemon-orange bouquet. There's some volatility, a frequent feature of Marc Benin's wines, reflecting the ripeness of the fruit. Obviously some botrytis character too. Big, soft, rounded, with plenty of texture and low acid. Baked oranges, lacking a little freshness although this improves with air. Ripe and characterful. 16/20 (September 2004)

Domaine de Ravanes Le Prime Verd (VdP des Coteaux de Murviel) 1995: An attractive hue here, obvious maturity, with a caramel-brickiness the dominant colour, with some red tones at the core. The nose follows on with this maturity, showing - after an hour or so in a decanter - the aromas of richly stewed game, cooked to a sticky sweetness, with slowly macerated peppered cherry fruit alongside. The violet perfume seen last time has faded and this seems much more deep and meaty now, although there are many dark characteristics here still, especially burnt black olives mixed with rusty iron filings. The palate is gentle and sweet with macerated fruit, with a chalky tinge, and plenty of good substance underneath it all, becoming particularly obvious through the middle of the palate. Firm in the finish, showing quite strong acidity building through the palate. I preferred the delicate perfume that I found two years ago, but this is still very good. From my 1995 vintage Fifteen Years On tasting. 17/20 (December 2010)

Domaine de Ravanes Le Prime Verd (VdP des Coteaux de Murviel) 1995: A dark, garnet coloured wine, showing some maturity of colour in the decanter, where it rested for an hour or so before drinking. The nose quickly opens up, unfolding to reveal aromas of dark fruits, with a bright and elegant perfume of violets, with perhaps a little meaty note at the edge. During the evening the wine became more aromatic, and as the decanter is gradually drained there are notes of black olives, pretty rose petals and even a little tar. On the palate, though, it shows plenty of full and sweet fruit, quite rounded and complete, and certainly not showing any excessive age. It is very well defined, with a lovely structure of ripe tannins which provide a backbone to the firm style, rather than dominating the wine. Through the midpalate it shows lovely substance, some fresh acids and a nice grip, perhaps slightly bitter towards the finish, but with a lovely, sappy, tannic coating here also. This wine has a beautiful composition, quite pure, but not hugely complex. In terms of development it is still on the way up, and it has fine potential, although it is very approachable now. For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 17.5+/20 (September 2008)

Domaine de Ravanes Merlot (VdP des Coteaux de Murviel) 1986: The wine immediately let forth a sweet, ripe aroma of macerated fruit, and when poured into the glass showed a very mature hue, a mahogany red at the core, fading to a caramel tawny at the rim. Nuances of macerated fruit stay with the wine throughout the evening, quickly joined by little notes of beef, liquorice and brazil nut, with an iron-tinged edge. On the palate it does not show quite so well; it is fairly convincing at the start, with an appealing texture and nicely rounded off edges, but through the midpalate it reveals a little heat and a bitter twist to the fruit, culminating at the finish which has a slightly disjointed feel to it. There are some very complex but fleeting flavours passing through here also, notes of citrus fruit, rose petals and sun baked fruit. It still has an generous presence in the mouth through, with a good body and firm acidity giving the wine a nice composition, which perhaps only falls away on the finish. What can I say? I like this wine, which lingers in a sweet, slightly hot fashion on the finish, but I can't deny that, like the Cabernet, it most likely had more to offer a few years ago. For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 16.5/20 (January 2007)

Domaine de Ravanes Cabernet Sauvignon (VdP des Coteaux de Murviel) 1979: A very mature hue, browning at the rim, with a rich mahogany core. A rather classic maturing Cabernet nose, which has a firm meaty vein, with notes of spiced tobacco and cigar box, with a slightly earthy edge. Later there are little nuances of mint and even a salty, freshly-landed shellfish note; this is clearly a wine throwing out a complex bouquet as it reaches the end of its life. Nevertheless, it is holding together well on the midpalate, with fully resolved tannins, and balanced acidity, and the appealing spiced, meaty character found on the nose translates into beefy, iron-mineral flavours on the palate, followed by fleeting nuances of bitter cherries, and then dark, chewy liquorice confectionery, and amazingly even a little sweet blackcurrant. It lacks a little backbone, with the tannins completely integrated, but this is to be expected. It slowly fades on the finish, where to be honest it seems a little hollow, right on the end palate. Overall I'm pretty pleased with how this bottle has held together over the years. For label images and more see my Wine of the Week write-up. 16.5/20 (September 2006)