Reasons to Gather When It Gets Darker
The clocks fall back this weekend, which means we’re officially in the season of 4:30pm sunsets and pretending that’s fine. However, here’s the thing: the darker it gets outside, the more we find reasons to gather inside. We join book clubs where we might indulge in more wine than plot discussion. We also find reasons to share the burden of a home-cooked meal by spreading the labor across the tables of friends and family. Purse strings may feel tighter this year, so the fact that you keep choosing to spend some of yours with local businesses like us means the most. Consider this month’s selections a thank-you. It’s three bottles from Provence’s Coteaux d’Aix: two from La Mongestine, a producer who happily ignored the appellation rulebook, and one from Château de Calavon, a family estate five generations deep. They’re light, honest, and built for the table, because good wine doesn’t have to break the bank. It just has to be good.
There’s plenty to raise a glass to this month. Beaujolais Nouveau Day lands on Nov. 19, when France pops the cork on the year’s first wine to toast the harvest. Before any of that, get out and vote on Nov. 3. Using your voice, especially when it comes to homegrown issues, is always worth celebrating, preferably with a glass in hand.
1) LA MONGESTINE “BOB” BLANC 2025, PROVENCE, FRANCE
WINE: WHITE // GRAPES: ROLLE (VERMENTINO) & ROUSSANNE // CLUB: VIN DE SOIF & CORK DORK
About the Producer: La Mongestine sits in the village of Artigues, the northernmost corner of the Coteaux d’Aix-en-Provence appellation. Rather than fight that cooler, higher-altitude reality, they lean into it by growing “northern” grapes like Roussanne and Pinot Noir on north-facing, clay-limestone slopes 450 meters up. Everything is farmed organically and biodynamically. With their Bob range, they declassify to Vin de France on purpose, trading the appellation’s rulebook for the freedom to make wines that surprise.
About the Wine: Think of this as a south-meets-north handshake in a glass. Something we can appreciate in Vermont. Vermentino is picked a touch early to keep it zippy, then blended with Roussanne that spends two weeks on its skins. The result is slightly cloudy, lemony and gently spiced, with a touch of texture on the finish. It’s made with native yeasts, aged in concrete, and left unfined and unfiltered. At 11.5%, it’s the bottle to open while everyone’s still arguing about who’s going to do the dishes.
2) LA MONGESTINE “BOB” ROUGE 2025, PROVENCE, FRANCE
WINE: RED // GRAPES: PINOT NOIR, ROUSSANNE, SYRAH, GRENACHE, MARSELAN & MERLOT // CLUB: VIN DE SOIF & CORK DORK
About the Wine: Half Pinot Noir, a splash of white Roussanne, and a handful of southern grapes rounding out the rest. On paper it shouldn’t work, but it absolutely does. A quick five-hour maceration keeps it light, bright and a little hazy, with red berries and a surprising hint of crunchy white fruit. It’s the definition of vin de soif: juicy, thirst-quenching and best served with a slight chill. The producer suggests poultry, which makes this your no-brainer Thanksgiving red. It also works for a Tuesday night when you don’t plan on cooking at all.
3) CHÂTEAU DE CALAVON “AGATHE” ROSÉ 2025, COTEAUX D’AIX-EN-PROVENCE, FRANCE
WINE: ROSÉ // GRAPES: GRENACHE, CINSAULT & SYRAH // CLUB: CORK DORK ONLY
About the Producer: In the village of Lambesc, the Audibert family has been making wine at Château de Calavon for five generations. That makes it the oldest estate in town, and the family helped earn Coteaux d’Aix-en-Provence its official recognition. Their cellar lives in a renovated 17th-century coaching inn right in the village center. They’ve farmed organically since 2013 across 100 hectares of vines, including century-old Grenache and Carignan, plus 15 hectares of olive trees.
About the Wine: Yes, a rosé in November, and I’m not sorry. Pale pink and tangy, Agathe brings ripe red berries, grapefruit peel and a little sour cherry, all held together by a crispy freshness. It’s direct-pressed with a light maceration, fermented slow and cool in stainless steel, and bottled young to keep it bright. Rosé is secretly one of the most food-friendly wines on the table, making it the perfect tagalong for all your seasonal feasts.
Not a Cork Dork yet? Upgrade your membership for ~$20/month and this bottle is yours going forward.
