Once coming entirely from Grenache planted around 1950 in a sandy part of Lirac, the former Côtes-du-Rhône Les Sables d’Arene would be a standout Lirac if it wasn’t for the fact that mono-varietal wines were not permitted according under current AOC rules. Starting with the 2018 vintage, Les Sables d’Arene is now officially a Lirac since an elderly and heirless neighbor in Lirac was so impressed with François organic farming that he has leased his old vines of Syrah and Mourvèdre to Domaine Giraud. Depending on yields Sables d’Arene is about 2/3 Grenache with the remainder equal parts Syrah and Mourvèdre. It retains its characteristic bright floral and bright cherry aromas with touches of bay laurel and peppery tannins.
This wine is produced from 60% old Grenache, (average 60 years of age) planted in combined with hints of licorice and 20% syrah and 20% mourvèdre. The palate is fresh and smooth with reafinesse andaromas of red fruit sabayon, liquorices and violets.
91-93 points, "Readers looking for a hidden gem should snatch up the 2019 Lirac Les Sables D’Arènes from the team at Giraud. Coming from just across the river from Châteauneuf du Pape and mostly Grenache, it offers a terrific perfume of spiced red fruits, loamy soils, Provençal herbs, and garrigue. Medium-bodied, seamless, and beautifully textured, it has sweet tannins and is already impossible to resist. It’s a smoking bottle of wine in the making." - Jeb Dunnuck