Writing for the FT (Financial Times) Andrew Jefford suggests, “Mourvèdre will, I believe, one day be seen as the grape variety of choice for the finest, warmest red wine sites in the south of France”.
The article paints a bleak picture for the future of Bandol: “The fact that Bandol, just west of Toulon, is one of Provence’s leading seaside resorts seems to have a corrupting effect on wine production there. The sad truth is that most of its wine…is rosé. Red wine production has sunk to just 30 percent of the total”.
All of which may be, in part, due to the fact the wines have not been overwhelmingly embraced as fine wines in the same way as those of other European regions: “It is curious that the greatest wines of Bandol aren’t more widely acclaimed”.
The article is here: Greater Provence by Andrew Jefford