FRENCH WINE

For more than nine generations the Simon-Vallat family has owned an old water mill built in one of their vineyards. The millstone dating as far back as 1710 still exists. In 1892, the mill stopped grinding the cereals which people used to bring to it from the surrounding villages. The whole story could have inspired Southern French writers like Marcel Pagnol or Alphonse Daudet. they might have written about how the mill expired waterless by its dry creek, the Pourpré (this name probably means Stony or Rolling Stones in Occitan). This creek gathered the waters from several springs. But one day, one of them was sold by the local authorities, and deviated to Bagnols sur Cèze.

My great grand father was told this wouldn't affect the activity of his mill. But in fact, it did and never again did the little mill have enough water to make its millstones turn. Even the newspapers wrote endlessly about the deviated spring and the terrible consequences for the mill. But nothing could be done to save it... The poor owner, who loved his mill so much, gave its name to his wine and had to concentrate even more on his wineyard to forget about the little mill. But, its story is still told through the wine....

On about 21 hectares of typical Côtes du Rhône grapes are grown: Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Cinsault,Counoise, Clairettes, Bourboulenc etc....

Since my father Francis Simon died in 1995, I have been making wine here. I used to be a journalist in Paris for French Television and also for the press and the radio. I also studied English and obtained a PhD in English, which allowed me to teach English in the University of Nanterre, In Paris.

The Red wine I produce is usually made out of 50% Syrah and 50% Grenache. It has impressed the judges in many wine competitions:
In 1981 the red wine my father produced received le Prix d'Excellence de L'Union des Oenologues, in 1984 it was elected Special Reserve of the Avignon Festival.
The 1988 and 1990 vintages won two silver medals in Mâcon.
the 1995 vintage won two Silver Medals, one in Uzès and one in Orange. The 1998 vintage was given a silver medal in Epernay by the Confédération des Caves Particulières .
The vintage 2000 won a Gold Medal in Orange and a Silver Medal for vintage 2001.I sell the red wine after at least two years aging

The Rosé is obtained through a bleeding of Syrah/Grenache and Cinsault. With its good acidity and powerful aromatic structure it is perfect to go along with spicy mediteranean cooking and with even more hot spicy exotic food. It has to be drunk very cool, which is wonderful on warm summer evenings. The vintage 2003 was also given a Silver Medal in Avignon.

The White I produce is a dry wine which can be enjoyed as an aperitive wine as well as with sea food, fish or shells. Very pleasant with une Bourride or moules marinières.
The vintage 2003 obtained a Gold Medal in Uzès.
It is made with all our white grapes Bourboulenc, Ugni blanc, Clairettes blanches and Grenache blanc, all hand picked on the same day and pressed together. My white vineyard are very old. In fact, one of them hasn't been replanted since 1901.
Dussert-Gerber in his wine guide has given my production Four Stars in 1997, 2001, 2002 and Five Stars in 1998, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008