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La Cave des Nomades

La Source Du Nahual 2018

Price: $49.95
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Tasting notes

This is a wine from one of the most dramatic coastal terroirs in France — steep schist slopes in Banyuls where dry Mediterranean heat meets sea wind. Zé's biodynamic approach, zero sulfites, and intuitive use of vessels across a tiny 3-hectare estate produces something raw-edged and site-specific: red and dark fruit with a mineral, garrigue-inflected backbone you rarely find at this price point.

BodyFruitTanninAcidity
BlackberryGarrigueEarthWild Strawberry
  • Style: Dry red; biodynamic; old vine Grenache Noir, Carignan, Mourvèdre; Banyuls-sur-Mer schist; 13% ABV; zero added sulfites
  • Grapes & Terroir: Grenache Noir, Carignan, Mourvèdre and others; biodynamic; steep schist slopes, Banyuls-sur-Mer, Côte Vermeille, Roussillon
  • Winemaking: Native yeast fermentation; no added sulfites; no fining or filtration; vessels vary by vintage (stainless steel, old oak, amphora); micro-production 300-1,200 bottles
  • Serving: Serve at 60-64°F; consider a 20-minute decant to open up; may have sediment — pour carefully
  • Pairing: Grilled lamb, duck confit, roasted eggplant, aged Manchego, rosemary-seasoned meats
  • Similar To: For fans of earthy, mineral southern French reds who want a natural, zero-sulfite expression of Roussillon schist

La Source du Nahual is a dry red from José Carvalho Moreira, a Portuguese-born winemaker who set up his 3-hectare micro-estate in Banyuls-sur-Mer on the Côte Vermeille, the final stretch of the Pyrenees before they meet the Mediterranean. His vines grow on steep schist slopes above the village, the same dramatic terrain responsible for Banyuls' fortified wines, though Zé makes his wines dry and unfortified, bottled as Vin de France. Each cuvée is a micro-production of between 300 and 1,200 bottles.

The estate holds 12 parcels planted predominantly with low-yielding old vines of Grenache Noir, Carignan Noir, Mourvèdre, Syrah, and Merlot, among other varieties. Farming is biodynamic with no pesticides or herbicides. In the cellar, Zé adds no sulfites and does not fine or filter his wines. Vessels are chosen intuitively each vintage from stainless steel, old barrels, and amphorae of various sizes, with each parcel vinified separately before blending decisions are made.

The label, like all Cave des Nomades bottles, is printed on cork — a nod to Zé's upbringing in Portugal — and features artwork by artist Katja Stroph. The wine names are drawn from an imaginary universe of nomadic stories that Zé has been building since his first vintage in 2014.

Works well with grilled lamb chops, duck confit, or slow-roasted eggplant with herbs. The garrigue character of the Roussillon terroir makes it a natural match for dishes seasoned with rosemary and thyme. A slab of aged Manchego or Ossau-Iraty also holds up well against its structure.

Wine details

Dry/Sweet:, Dry
Wine Type:, Red Wine
Wine Style:, Medium Body
Grapes:, Grenache Noir, Carignan, Mourvèdre
Farming:, Biodynamic
Vintage:, 2018
Alcohol:, 13%
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

La Cave des Nomades

José Carvalho Moreira, known as Zé Tafé, grew up outside Porto, Portugal. Before making wine, he earned degrees in plastic arts, painting, and cinema, worked on organic and biodynamic farms across Europe, played guitar professionally, and held a logistics role at Ikea. In 2010, while harvesting fruit in Roussillon, a friend brought him to play music for local winemakers. One of them, Manuel Di Vecchi Staraz of Vinyer de la Ruca, introduced him to natural wine — his first encounter with wine he actually wanted to drink. After helping with several harvests, Zé purchased his first vineyard parcel in 2013, with Di Vecchi Staraz finding the land. His first commercial vintage was 2014.

La Cave des Nomades operates across 12 parcels totaling 3 hectares in and around Banyuls-sur-Mer. The estate holds old vines of Grenache Noir, Grenache Gris, Grenache Blanc, Carignan Noir, Carignan Gris, Mourvèdre, Syrah, Merlot, Macabeo, Muscat Petit Grain, and Chardonnay. All farming is biodynamic, with no synthetic inputs. Zé is a member of Les 9 Caves, a collective winemaking space in Banyuls that he helped establish with neighbors including Bruno Duchêne and Alain Castex. His final vintage in Banyuls was 2020, after which he relocated.

Each parcel is vinified separately, sometimes sorted by grape color, using vessels chosen intuitively: stainless steel tanks, old oak barrels, and amphorae. No sulfites are added, and wines are neither fined nor filtered. Blending and bottling decisions are made after fermentation, with the possibility of new cuvées introduced or existing ones reconfigured each year. Every wine is a micro-production between 300 and 1,200 bottles. Labels are printed on cork and feature original black-and-white artwork by German-based artist Katja Stroph — each design is also tattooed on Zé.

Wine region

Roussillon, France

Roussillon sits in the far south of France, tucked into a geographic amphitheater bounded by the Pyrenees to the south and west, the Mediterranean to the east, and the Corbières mountains to the north. It is France's hottest and driest wine region, with over 320 days of sunshine annually and a persistent northern wind called the Tramontane that moderates temperatures and reduces disease pressure. Soils vary considerably across the region, from clay-limestone in the north to schist, granite, and gneiss closer to the Spanish border. Near Banyuls-sur-Mer on the Côte Vermeille, the dominant soil is steep, dark schist, which drains rapidly and stresses the vine into low yields and concentrated fruit.

The key appellations in Roussillon include Côtes du Roussillon, Côtes du Roussillon Villages, Collioure (for dry reds), and Banyuls and Maury for fortified vins doux naturels. Grenache Noir is the anchor grape across most of these appellations, blended with Carignan, Mourvèdre, and Syrah. Winemakers working outside the AOC regulations — particularly natural producers seeking freedom in grape varieties and winemaking methods — often bottle under the broader Vin de France designation. The region identifies culturally with Catalonia; it became part of France only in 1659.

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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Natural wine is a type of wine made in small batches from organic or biodynamic grapes with minimal intervention.
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Biodynamic wine is wine made from grapes farmed biodynamically. Biodynamic farming is a holistic approach.
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