To the far south, the massive battlements on a hill are those of the papal palace in Avignon. Everything in the region is situated relatively close together. And between the landmarks lie vines, lots of vines. Nearly 10,000 growers cultivate 100,000 acres of vineyards. And it seems as though every village of any size is dominated by the stainless-steel tanks of the local cooperative, where most growers still take their grapes.
Every house seems to belong to a vigneron.
In high-quality years, like 1998, these are big wines with alcohol levels between 13.5 and 15 percent. Warm, herb-laden, spicy tastes are characteristic of the best wines of the region. Gigondas is the other top commune of the region, but its wines, with a higher percentage of Grenache, tend to be less complex than those of its more illustrious neighbor. Still, offerings from the likes of Domaine du Cayron, Domaine Les Goubert, Domaine Saint-Gayan and Domaine Santa Duc can often be seriously beefy reds. Wines from here can age well, sometimes requiring five to ten years from vintage before reaching maturity.