Why it matters
The producer
Jean-Luc Colombo grew up in Marseille, where his mother was a cook, and carried that culinary background into studies of pharmacology and enology at the University of Montpellier. With his wife Anne, he founded the Centre Oenologique des Côtes du Rhône in Cornas. Commercial production under the Vins Jean-Luc Colombo label began in 1994.
Their daughter Laure, a viticulturist and oenologist, joined the family estate in 2010. The estate uses organic viticulture, with ECOCERT certification effective from the 2015 vintage onward.
Place and vineyards
Where the wines begin
Cornas is the base for Colombo's consulting centre and vineyard holdings. La Belle de Mai carries the Saint-Péray appellation, a Rhône appellation for white wine made from Marsanne and Roussanne. The bottle therefore names Saint-Péray, while Colombo's family vineyard history begins in Cornas.
Wines to know
The range in view
La Belle de Mai Saint-Péray is Colombo's Saint-Péray white cuvée, made from Marsanne and Roussanne. The grapes are fermented slowly in oak barrels.
The wine is golden yellow with green highlights. Hawthorn, linden blossom, quince, citrus and sweetbread lead into a full bodied, fruity and mineral palate with a persistent finish.