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Clos Cibonne

Provence
France

Clos Cibonne, one of the only 18 Cru Classé growers in the Côtes de Provence.

Established in the 18th century, Clos Cibonne has been owned by the Roux family for over two centuries. Now in its fifth generation, the estate has been certified organic since the 2019 vintage.

The estate’s 15 hectares of vineyards are located a mere 800 metres from the coast and are surrounded by hillsides in the base of a bowl that faces the Mediterranean sea. This topography creates air circulation extends the growing period whilst cooling the vines. The soil is a mixture of schist and clay.

Tibouren, an indigenous Provençal variety, originally grown in Mesopotamia, propagated by the Greeks, before being transported by the Romans to Italy in the Liguria region, where it is known as rossese. Tibouren is a very fine, thin-skinned grape which requires a lot of ventilation to be successful and needs to grow close to the ocean, with lots of ventilation to be successful and avoid issues with rot.

All of these requirements make Clos Cibonne the perfect terroir for Tibouren, as they are walking distance to the ocean and constantly blasted with the drying winds from the mistral.

Clos Cibonne, synonymous with Tibouren

André Roux was a great fan of this native variety and understood its potential to be the ideal grape for the region. As part of his revitalization, he replaced all of the estate’s Mourvèdre with Tibouren. Clos Cibonne soon became synonymous with Tibouren and received special permission from the A.O.C. to list the grape on its labels.

Unique rosé aged under fleurette

Unlike other producers in the region that age their wines in standard barrels, Clos Cibonne employs a traditional technique known as “élevage en grand format” (ageing in large formats). The wines mature under fleurette (a delicate veil of yeast, similar to the process used in Sherry or Jura wines) in century-old 5,000L foudres for one year. They are then aged further in the bottle before release, with the duration varying by cuvée.

The wines produced at Clos Cibonne are celebrated for their balance, freshness, and structure, offering exceptional drinkability over many years, a result of the rare Tibouren grape and the estate’s traditional aging process.