Bandol: Panel tasting results

Elizabeth Gabay MW, Beatrice Bessi and Poppy de Courcy-Wheeler tasted 77 wines, with 4 Outstanding and 26 Highly recommended.

Bandol: Panel tasting scores

77 wines tasted

Exceptional 0

Outstanding 4

Highly recommended 26

Recommended 42

Commended 5

Fair 0

Poor 0

Entry criteria: producers and UK agents were invited to submit their latest-vintage AP Bandol wines in white, rosé or red, and preferably all three if possible

Bandol is an appellation with a dual image – part of Provence proper, but not part of its marketing activities. This tasting offered an opportunity to ascertain whether any distinctive Bandol characters shone through, especially in the rosés.

Overall, the quality of the wines excelled, with really good examples in all three colours (30 rosé, 29 red and 18 white) in a distinctly Bandol style, especially evident in the big, structured reds and rosés.

There is a growing interest in the whites from this region, so it was good to see a decent representation. Despite the high volume of rosé produced in the region (74% in 2023, according to Vins de Bandol), the true stars of this tasting were the reds, representing 71% of the wines scoring 91-points and above.

Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores from the Bandol panel tasting

Greater accessibility

Though the one 2016 wine (Domaine Maubernard) did have the biggest tannic structure of all, reflecting the traditional vision of Bandol reds as being ageworthy, most of the reds were showing much greater youthful accessibility than Bandols of decades past.

The windows for ageing potential were judged to be lower than usually estimated – although it’s worth noting that these wines are yet to go through the common closed, ‘moody teenager’ phase that occurs at around five to six years.

We queried how well these wines would age with such fruit-forward friendliness when young, and wondered whether some producers keep some cuvées back to release with more age.

Fruit profiles varied from deep, dark, opulent berries to blue fruit and elegant minerality. Others, namely Château Canadel and Peyraud’s Domaine Tempier, have a more traditional, intense tannic structure.

Beatrice Bessi was expecting more alcohol, so was surprised to find only a few had high levels. The least successful wines were tasting faded or too lightweight. Oak use was homogenous and not overwhelming.

See all the wines from the Bandol panel tasting

White and rosé

While the reds may have attracted the high scores, the rosés were probably the most interesting category – compared to Provence rosés, most were distinctly darker, yet there were certainly some with a paler, salmon-pink tone, albeit with a bigger structure. Poppy de Courcy-Wheeler said that some reminded her of light-red clairets.

Both Bessi and de Courcy-Wheeler felt that these are rosés with ageing potential and that consumers can be confident in seeking out older vintages, although both were cautious about recommending more than a year of ageing.

De Courcy-Wheeler wondered if aged rosés would have a better chance in the market if they were sold as a different category with their own shelf space, in order to give consumers confidence in the style.

With global demand for white wines growing, it wasn’t surprising that there were a good number of whites in the tasting. Although lack of acidity is often considered a problem in Bandol, especially with Clairette as a majority component (50% minimum), the 2023 vintage showed very fresh acidity.

An oily texture was also observed and de Courcy-Wheeler noticed that for the whites and rosés, the word ‘tangy’ came up a lot. The Clairette character of soft honeyed pears and white flowers gave the wines an attractive, distinctive character and Bessi highlighted that the intense ripeness of fruit often gave the impression of some oak ageing.

With prices ranging from about £15 to more than £50, the ageing potential of all three colours helps justify the investment in Bandol.

Bandol panel tasting scores

Wines were tasted blind

The judges

Elizabeth Gabay MW is a wine writer, educator, speaker and consultant, with a focus on rosé and the wines of southern France, where she has lived since 2002. Her second book Rosés of Southern France, co-authored with son Ben Bernheim, was published in July 2022 (£22 Zalabim Conseil).

Beatrice Bessi is head sommelier at Chiltern Firehouse luxury hotel and restaurant in central London. A DWWA judge, Bessi is a CMS Advanced Sommelier and WSET educator. She moved to the UK from Italy in 2016 and began her sommelier career at 67 Pall Mall.

Poppy de Courcy-Wheeler is a wine buyer for Waitrose, focusing on rosé, Burgundy and regional France, having previously worked for more than five years in roles including wine buying and head of trade sales at importer Charles Taylor Wines.

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