Geoffrey Dean: Provence blog, Part Two

A 15-minute ferry ride from Giens takes you to Porquerolles, the best-known of the three picturesque and hilly holiday islands that form Les Iles d'Hyeres. The most noticeable thing on arrival is the absence of cars, which are banned apart from service vehicles. Bicyle, therefore, is king, although I made the ten-minute journey from the little port to La Courtade on foot.

Richard Auther, the winemaker, was away but Gisele Ventre, the cellar master, was an informative host as we walked around the 30 hectares the winery has under vine. It had been bakingly hot on the mainland, but the cooling breeze discouraged barely a bead of sweat forming on my brow during a half-hour perambulation.

"We get a different climate to the rest of Provence," Gisele revealed. "It's never too hot with the wind but we are the sunniest place in France with an average of 3,000 hours per year. It's 22-23 degrees today, although a bit hotter in August. Nights are fresh, which is good for the grapes. Rain is very rare in summer and we never get hail."

Thanks to the sea, humidity is always high which means dryness is rarely a problem in the vineyards. This is important for La Courtade's most planted grape, mourvedre, which loves heat but also requires a constant supply of moisture. The fact that the predominantly schist soil is notable for its moisture retention is also significant. "Mourvedre likes to see the sea," Gisele mused.

La Courtade's celebrated flagship red (97% mourvedre, 3% syrah) is a glorious wine - dark and deep with a nose of pepper, spices, leather and truffles. It is also surprisingly elegant. When I asked Gisele how the wine differed from Tempier's benchmark mourvedre, she replied that "ours is more feminine." Tempier happily accepted this when I visited their winery (half-way between Toulon and Marseille), pointing out their cepage is different, generally containing some grenache and cinsault.

Comparisons with Tempier are interesting. Bandol's argilo-clacaire soil (a mix of clay and limestone) is quite different but while both Tempier and Courtade are organic and hand harvest only, the former's yield is lower: 30-35 hl/h compared to 40-45. The average age of vines at Tempier (40 years) is inevitably higher than of La Courtade (20 years), where planting was only begun in 1983 by owner, Henri Vidal. By contrast, the Peyraud family settled at Tempier in 1940, the Bandol AC being created a year later.

After Bandol, it was up to far north of Provence for a night with the president-elect of Marylebone Cricket Club , Philip Hodson and his wife Sally at their holiday house north of Aix. They informed me that Peter Mayle lives just down the road from them, having just downsized to a place in the lovely town of Lourmarin.

Apparently, the old boy is well-liked by the locals but other near-residents, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie (when they are in Provence) unsurprisingly keep themselves to themselves. The Cotes de Luberon wines I tasted were almost as anonymous, mid-table aspirants while La Courtade and Tempier are perennially worthy of Champions League status. They, along with Chateau Simone, Domaine de Trevallon and Chateau Minuty, are the leaders of the Provencal wine charge. Without doubt, it is one to monitor.

• Harpers Says...