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Domaine Lampyres

Calentu Nouveau 2019

Price: $33.95
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Tasting notes

This is Grenache at its most unguarded: pale ruby, low tannin, and bursting with fresh strawberry, cherry, and a whisper of earthy funk from the carbonic fermentation. The 2019 vintage is a minor miracle given that over half the crop was destroyed by a June heat event that sent temperatures to 118°F — the fruit that survived has real concentration hiding under the Nouveau-style lightness.

BodyFruitTanninAcidity
Wild StrawberryCherryPomegranateEarth
  • Style: Dry, light-bodied red; pale ruby; fresh strawberry and cherry, earthy carbonic funk; 13.5% ABV
  • Grapes & Terroir: 100% Grenache Noir; certified organic; schist and clay-limestone soils, Espira-de-l'Agly, Agly Valley, Roussillon
  • Winemaking: 100% carbonic fermentation; whole-cluster; indigenous yeasts only; minimal sulfur at bottling; bottled unfined and unfiltered
  • Serving: Serve at 53-57°F (lightly chilled); no decant needed; drink young
  • Pairing: Charcuterie, pork rillettes, grilled chicken, tomato salad, aged Comté
  • Similar To: For fans of Beaujolais Nouveau and light carbonic Grenache who want a Roussillon take on the style

Calentu Nouveau is 100% Grenache Noir grown organically in Espira-de-l'Agly, a village at the mouth of the Agly Valley in Roussillon. The 2019 vintage was among the most extreme in recent memory for the eastern Roussillon: a late-June heat event pushed temperatures to 118°F (48°C), burning off more than half the potential crop before harvest. The grapes that survived were concentrated and intense. This cuvée was the first Nouveau produced by Domaine Lampyres, made in a carbonic fermentation style built for early drinking.

The wine is classified as Vin de France, giving FX Dauré full freedom in winemaking. Fermentation is whole-cluster and carbonic, yielding a pale-ruby, low-tannin red with bright fruit and a slightly savory edge. Minimal intervention in the cellar, indigenous yeasts only, and a small addition of sulfur at bottling. Bottled unfined and unfiltered.

The soils around Espira-de-l'Agly are a mix of schist, clay-limestone, and rolled river stones. The Agly Valley's persistent Tramontane wind helps control humidity and reduces disease pressure in the vineyard, supporting Dauré's organic farming without the need for interventions.

Calentu is best served slightly chilled and consumed young. Think of it as Roussillon's answer to Beaujolais Nouveau: light-bodied, vibrant, and designed to show off the grape in its most immediate, expressive state.

Serve slightly chilled at around 55°F alongside charcuterie, pork rillettes, or a simple tomato salad with olive oil and herbs. The low tannins and bright acidity also make it a natural match for grilled chicken thighs or a plate of aged Comté. Works well as an aperitif on its own.

Wine details

Dry/Sweet:, Dry
Wine Type:, Red Wine
Wine Style:, Light Body
Grapes:, Grenache Noir
Farming:, Organic
Vintage:, 2019
Alcohol:, 13.5%
Country:, France
Region:, Roussillon
Appellation:, Vin de France
Bottle Size:, 750ml
Sugar Level:, Zero Added Sugar

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.


Important Compliance Requirements

FedEx and other carriers we might occasionally use can only deliver wine to customers who are 21 years or older. Someone must be at the address to receive the package, carriers don't just drop a package and leave. They must ensure the person receiving the wine is 21 or older.


Re-shipping a Package

If a package is returned to us after three failed delivery attempts, we can only re-ship the wine upon payment of a re-shipping fee, to be determined based on the shipping address and number of bottles. Shipping wine is extremely expensive. We are sorry about this, but we have no other choice. Please make sure there's always someone at the address you enter as your shipping address.

If you'd like to receive a refund for a package that was returned to us after FedEx made three delivery attempts, we can do that but we must keep a $20 refund fee; FedEx charges us a lot of money for returns, unfortunately, I can't stress this enough.


Re-routing a Package

If you'd like to reroute a package after it's been shipped, we can do so for a $20 re-routing fee. We cannot re-route a package across state borders. For any change of address, please contact us as soon as possible, ideally within 1-2 days from placing the order or we cannot guarantee we'll be able to reroute or change your order's shipping address.


Canceling an Order

If you'd like to cancel an order after it's been shipped, we can do so upon payment of a small cancellation fee – the amount depends on the size of the order. Carriers charge us a lot of money to recall a package en-route.


Heat/Frost damage

We are not responsible for heat- or frost-related issues. We offer ice-packs upon request. Please let us know if you think that there could be heat-related issues. If we don't hear anything from you regarding weather issues before an order is shipped, or if you don't request a hold due to the weather, we are not responsible for heat/frost damage.


Placed an order. What next?

1. You will receive an order confirmation email with your order summary.*

2. As soon as your order ships from the warehouse, usually within 2-3 business days, this applies to all shipping rates, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with your tracking information. 2DAY shipping refers to shipping time; we still need 2-3 business days to prepare an order. We need to pick and pack, QA, add printed collateral, and palletize the orders.

3. Please track your package using the tracking service.

4. The carrier will attempt delivery a maximum of 3 times. After 3 delivery attempts, your package will be sent back to our warehouse.**

*Please ensure your email address is correct; otherwise, you will not receive the order and shipping confirmation emails.

**If delivery is attempted 3 times without success, or if you fail to retrieve your package from the carrier depot by the stated deadline, the shipping fee will not be refunded to the customer.

Returns Policy

If you are not satisfied with your purchase, please contact us at (424) 414-2040 or via e-mail at hello@primalwine.com between 9 am and 5 pm Pacific Standard Time, Monday through Sunday, we would like to understand and try to solve your concerns. We can offer refunds only as store credit.

Producer profile

Domaine Lampyres

François-Xavier Dauré (FX) is a fourth-generation grape grower from Espira-de-l'Agly. His family sold their production to the local cooperative for generations, a practice common in the region after demand for Rivesaltes sweet wines declined. In 2015, FX joined New Zealander Tom Lubbe at Domaine Matassa, working in both the vineyard and cellar for five vintages while simultaneously taking over his family's 16 hectares and converting them to organic farming.

To manage both responsibilities, FX worked in his vineyards before sunrise for years, navigating the rows with a headlamp. Friends who spotted the bobbing light in the dark compared him to a lampyre, the French word for firefly, and the name stuck for his new project. Domaine Lampyres launched with its inaugural vintage in 2016, producing just 600 bottles of two cuvées in a garage in Espira. By the time Jancis Robinson wrote about the domaine in 2025, FX had grown to 17 hectares, 12 cuvées, and approximately 20,000 bottles annually, with a new cellar converted from an old farmhouse in 2022.

Farming across all parcels is certified organic. The vineyards around Espira-de-l'Agly sit on schist, clay-limestone, and alluvial soils. FX uses indigenous yeasts exclusively across the range, bottles wines unfined and unfiltered, and adds only a minimal dose of sulfur at bottling. The Calentu Nouveau was the first nouveau-style wine FX produced, debuting in the 2019 vintage using 100% carbonic fermentation of Grenache Noir. 2019 was his final vintage working at Matassa.

Wine region

Roussillon, France

Roussillon sits at the southernmost tip of France, bordered by the Pyrenees to the west and south and the Mediterranean to the east. The Agly Valley, running east-west through the region, is one of its most distinctive sub-zones. Espira-de-l'Agly sits at the valley's mouth, where the terrain transitions from alluvial flatlands to steep schist and clay-limestone hillsides. The soils in and around the village are a mosaic of laminated schist, clay-limestone, and rolled river stones, all shaped by centuries of erosion from the surrounding massif.

The Agly Valley's climate is emphatically Mediterranean: hot, dry summers and mild winters, with the Tramontane, a strong northwest wind, sweeping through the valley regularly. The Tramontane reduces humidity and disease pressure, making organic and biodynamic farming more viable here than in many other French regions. The key appellations covering the area include Côtes du Roussillon Villages, Maury, and Rivesaltes, though producers like Domaine Lampyres elect to use the Vin de France designation for creative freedom. Grenache Noir, Carignan, Syrah, and Mourvèdre are the dominant red varieties.

Frequently asked question

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.

Signature on delivery is mandatory for wine deliveries. Please make sure someone is at the shipping address to sign for the package.

If applicable, please consider delivering the package to a business address to ensure someone is available to sign for the package.

We also have the option of delivering the package to a Carrier's store for pickup. Please reach out to us to coordinate.

Carrier will try to delivery a package up to three times before returning the package to us.

See here our shipping policy.

If you miss a delivery and a package gets returned to us we have two options:

1) Reship the package right away: due to the very high cost of shipping and returns, we must charge a re-shipping fee to be determined based on package size and shipping destination.

2) Consolidate the returned package with your next order: this option is free of charge and it's the most popular option.

See here our shipping policy.

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