Why it matters
The producer
Pasquiers is a large Rhône estate with a family history that reaches back to 1935 and a range spread across four appellations. The Lambert family has kept the property in its own hands while the wines have moved through several label categories, from broad Côtes du Rhône to the more specific Plan de Dieu, Sablet, and Gigondas names.
Jean-Claude and Philippe Lambert took over the estate in 1998, and Philippe's children Matthieu and Perrine now work with them. That family handover sits alongside a practical wine philosophy: each grape has a job in the blend, so the final wine can carry rounded fruit, defined shape, and darker depth in the same glass.
Place and vineyards
Where the wines begin
The Rhône location becomes visible through the appellation names on the bottles. Côtes du Rhône signals the broad regional category, while Côtes du Rhône Villages Plan de Dieu and Côtes du Rhône Villages Sablet identify named village appellations. Gigondas brings a separate appellation name within the estate's range. The wording changes from label to label, even though the wines come from one family operation.
Plan de Dieu is the most fully described wine in the supplied range. Its tasting language centres on stewed cherries, garrigue, thyme, cocoa, sweet spices, mint, tobacco, and clean, sweet fruit. Those details give the appellation a recognisable Rhône register without assigning unsupported flavour profiles to the estate's Sablet, Gigondas, or broader Côtes du Rhône bottles.
In the cellar
Vineyards and cellar
The estate's grape choices are functional. Grenache is selected for fruitiness and mellowness, giving the blend its rounded, sweet-fruited centre. Syrah is chosen for shape and delicacy, bringing definition to the fruit. Mourvèdre contributes depth and concentration, adding a darker register to the blend.
Plan de Dieu 2023 shows the proportions clearly: 60% Grenache, 30% Syrah, and 10% Mourvèdre. The composition makes the wine's three-part design legible in the glass, with Grenache carrying the fruit, Syrah giving the blend a defined outline, and Mourvèdre increasing its density. No further fermentation or ageing regime is established for this wine.
Wines to know
The range in view
The range moves across Côtes du Rhône, Côtes du Rhône Villages Plan de Dieu, Côtes du Rhône Villages Sablet, and Gigondas. Those appellations provide the estate's label architecture, while Plan de Dieu supplies the most detailed picture of how the wines taste. The range should be approached through its named bottles, not through one universal blend formula, because the composition can vary by vintage.
Plan de Dieu 2023 is a 60% Grenache, 30% Syrah, and 10% Mourvèdre red with 15% alcohol. Its nose moves between cocoa and sweet spices, with fresh mint lifting the darker aromas. On the palate, tobacco meets clean, sweet fruit recalling cherries or blackberries. The wine's profile joins warm fruit, herbal lift, savoury detail, and a full-bodied alcohol level without losing its fruit-led centre.
A useful way in
A bottle to begin with
Plan de Dieu 2023 is the bottle to open first. Its 60% Grenache, 30% Syrah, and 10% Mourvèdre blend shows the estate's grape-by-grape method in one pour: Grenache supplies the sweet cherry and blackberry centre, Syrah gives the fruit a defined shape, and Mourvèdre brings cocoa, tobacco, and darker concentration. Fresh mint and sweet spice brighten the nose, while the round palate carries 15% alcohol with clean fruit.