Winery Overview
Jeff Carrel was born in 1969 in Paris and lived in the neighborhood of La Goutte d'Or for 22 years where he studied chemistry. In 1991 he decided to change his life and started to study oenology in Montpellier in the south of France. Jeff graduated in 1994 with a National Diploma in oenology. He then toured France, vinifying in the Loire at Martignié Briant at the heart of Layon, then in Alsace for Wolfberger on their site Dambach, and in Languedoc at the laboratory of oenology Council. At the end of 1996, he became a technical director of a languedocienne subsidiary of a trading company of Bordeaux, Promocom. During this time he vinified for the Mondavi range Vichon, for the Stimson Lane range Color Volant, les Domaines, La Noble, Pomarèdes and Puydeval. At the end of 1998 he took over management of Domaine Puydeval. He also developed a consulting business where he vinified for Domaines and castles. In 2000, he created a company around the Domaines he advised, and in 2003 he left Domaine Puydeval to devote himself entirely to consulting and the management of a distribution company. Today Jeff Carrel vinifies and advises mainly in the Languedoc Roussillon, but also in Priorat, in Bordeaux, Beaujolais and in Bourgogne. He also focuses on the development of these wines: Puydeval, la Bette, les Herbes Hautes, Cote Ouest, les Darons, Morillon Blanc, Un Blanc Du Sud, Ornithology, Saveur Verte, BMV, Villa des Anges and many others to come. Grenache and Carignan have long been cultivated in Southern France and represent the forefathers of the Languedoc Appellation's red wines. An homage showcasing these varietals, this wine was subsequently labeled Les Darons, the affectionate expression for "parents" in the Parisian suburbs where winemaker Jeff Carrel was born.