Producer: Beaucastel

Château de Beaucastel, Rhône Valley (France)

"Chateau de Beaucastel has become the leading estate at Chateuneuf-du-Pape and is now in a class of its own"
(John Livingstone-Learmonth, The Wines of the Rhone, Faber & Faber)

Château de Beaucastel, arguably, the best estate in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, is owned by the family of François and Jean-Pierre Perrin. Certainly the longest-lived wine from the whole of the Southern Rhône, ageing well for 20 or more years in a top vintage, it is, however, atypical for the appellation. Of all the estates in the region, Beaucastel is one of only three to plant and vinify all thirteen grape varieties permitted by the Châteauneuf du Pape appellation regulations and includes a whopping 30-35% Mourvèdre in its red wine, matching the contribution from Grenache in the final blend. In great years, the Perrins produce a massively concentrated ultra-ageworthy cuvee, "Homage à Jacques Perrin" in very small quantities.

The family also owns a large Côtes du Rhône estate, also farmed organically, known as Coudoulet de Beaucastel,one of the very best, having more in common with very good Châteauneuf than with other Côtes du Rhône wines. This wine has much in common with Beaucastel, in particular its comparitively high Mourvèdre content but, whereas the grand vin is at its best after a minimum of 15-20 years, Coudoulet is a wine to approach from a much younger age - for us it is a 5-10 year wine.

Important for some consumers is the fact that these wines are organically produced (they have full Ecocert status from the 2001 vintage although the bottles do not bear the logo).

Frequently asked questions

We discovered wine when making a last grand tour of Europe before settling down to our careers. The old VW camper van inevitably kept breaking down and we found ourselves with time on our hands in the Loire, Bordeaux and, especially, the Rhône. There were only so many rivers to jump into to cool down in that hot summer so we started tasting wine - real wine, not the stuff we had been buying in the supermarkets. We returned to England knowing we would be starting a specialist wine import business importing from the Southern Rhône before expanding the list along with our interests to include a range of excellent mid-price Burgundy, Languedoc, Loire...

The decision to focus on France initially came about for two main reasons:

1. France still offers the highest quality and widest range of styles of wine of any wine-producing country;

2. By concentrating on a smaller geographical area it is possible to offer better value.

Since then, we have succumbed to the allure of Italy and have found some amazing wines from Piedmont, Tuscany, Veneto and, more recently, Basilicata and Puglia in the far south, all superb wines at affordable prices. Great food wines too so, whatever you are eating, you will find something to match it here.

Some restrictions we place on ourselves: only buy wines direct from the producers and sell by the (mixed) case to offer the best prices throughout the UK for wines of this quality. Also, and perhaps most important, only buy wines we like to drink ourselves.

Wines are stored in a temperature-controlled bonded warehouse so they never suffer overheating and dried-out corks which can so easily spoil good wines bought from shops and supermarkets. As we don't have a shop, our overheads are low which in turn enables us to keep our prices as low as possible.

Furthermore, unlike many other internet wine merchants, The Big Red Wine Company will mix cases at no extra charge.

We can store your wines at our bonded warehouse in Basildon for £8 plus VAT per case per year.

We will work quickly to ship your order as soon as possible. Once your order has shipped, you will receive an email with further information. Delivery times vary depending on your location.

Most wines can be purchased "in bond". This means that you only pay for the wine itself until you remove it from storage, at which time you will pay the duty and VAT at the prevailing rates together with any shipping charges. If a wine does not have an "in bond" price, please ask if you are interested in purchasing it this way as all wines are stored at the bond until sold.

Delivery is free on all orders over £200.
Otherwise, delivery is charged at £10 per delivery address for orders between £50 and £200.
Whilst we accept orders under £50, the delivery charge is £20 to cover the costs charged to us by the bonded warehouse.

Account

Château de Beaucastel, Rhône Valley (France)

Château de Beaucastel, Côtes du Rhône 2019 'Coudoulet de Beaucastel'

Château de Beaucastel, Côtes du Rhône 2020 'Coudoulet de Beaucastel'

Château de Beaucastel, Côtes du Rhône 2020 'Coudoulet de Beaucastel' Blanc

Château de Beaucastel, Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2017

Château de Beaucastel, Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2020

Château de Beaucastel, Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2018

Château de Beaucastel, Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2019

Frequently asked questions