Vallee du Paradis Rouge "Le Pourboire", Domaine Sainte Croix 2020 (Languedoc, France)

60% Carignan, 30% Grenache, 10% Syrah. Taken entirely from vineyards of 85-110 years of age. This wine is harvested a touch earlier than the rest of Sainte Croix's reds and always has a slightly lower Ph, leading to stability in the final wine. Meant to be easier-drinking and consumed younger, but still a clear depiction of the special valley in the Hautes Corbières where Ste Croix is working. Unfined, but very gently filtered via a cross-flow filter, which is less mechanically abrasive than a standard plane filter. 25ppm total SO2.