Amazingly rare bottles of Chateau Simon Château Simone is a wine estate in the commune of Meyreuil in Provence. It has been owned by the Rougier family since 1830, and today cultivates approximately half of the vineyards in the small appellation of Palette, which owes its AOC status to the efforts of Jean Rougier in 1948. The estate's grand vin is made from a blend of Grenache, Mourvèdre, Cinsaut and a range of other southern Rhône varieties. The estate's vineyards occupy north-facing, limestone-rich slopes that are interspersed with clay, pebbles and gravel. The site has a unique mesoclimate, created by the combination of the humidity from the Arc River and the shelter from the wind provided by the Montaiguet hill. These vineyards are maintained using traditional viticultural methods without the application of man-made fertilizers or weed killers. Simone also uses traditional vinification techniques. The grapes are harvested and sorted by hand, before they are fermented with natural yeasts under temperature-controlled conditions. For the Château Simone Rouge, grapes are gently crushed, destemmed and macerated for between 15 to 20 days. After fermentation, the wine is aged for eight months in small casks, followed by one year in oak barrels of varying ages. The wine is then blended and bottled without filtration. Château Simone's flagship white wine is dominated by Clairette, which is blended with smaller quantities of Grenache Blanc, Ugni Blanc, Bourboulenc and Muscat Blanc. Once fermented, the wine ages for 18 months in small oak casks (with six months spent on its lees), followed by a year in barrel. Château Simone also produces a rosé from the same grape varieties used to make its signature red wine, and two wines under the IGP Bouches-du-Rhône classification.