Barreau Baro no. 1 2024 750ml

$24.00

Domaine Barreau is a 34-hectare family estate at Boissel, two miles outside Gaillac in France's deep southwest. BARO is their unpretentious IGP Côtes du Tarn line, and the acronym is the whole pitch: Brillant, Aromatique, Rond, Onctueux. No. 1 is the red, Merlot blended with native Gaillac grapes, made for drinking young and often. Southwest France is still the best value hunting ground in the country, and this is what the locals actually drink.

Brilliant red color. Fruity nose full of red berries. Ample and supple on the palate with soft tannins and a round, easy finish. Zero pretension, maximum drinkability.

Duck confit, Toulouse sausage with lentils, a weeknight burger, hard mountain cheeses.

The Barreau family farms 34 hectares at Boissel near Gaillac, one of France's oldest wine regions, with a range spanning AOP Gaillac cuvées and the BARO IGP line in red, white and rosé. Retail sources list the red as Merlot with Duras or Braucol, both native Gaillac varieties.