Pascal Chalon's Côtes-du-Rhône reds aren't built the same as other reds by the same name: they're not just the regular opaque, dark purple plonk you can get by the bucketful in this catch-all appellation. (There's 32,000 hectares of vines in the Côtes-du-Rhône alone, for reference.) This iteration, 'the Big Bear,' a reference to the Big Dipper, is a blend of Syrah, Grenache, and 10% Mourvèdre and Carignan; it's organically farmed, spontaneously fermented, and ages in a mix of barrique and big 500L demi-muid barrels; in other words, it's made with old-school French winemaking. Cassis and plum, yes, but with earth, minerality, and a little sprinkling of the stars.