Silver medal at the Mâcon Competition: recognition for Château des Coccinelles and its 2024 vintage

June 17, 2026

In the world of wine, some awards count more than others. Winning a medal at the Concours des Grands Vins de Mâcon means receiving serious, objective, and national recognition. For Château des Coccinelles , this 2024 silver medal for a Côtes du Rhône red from the 2024 vintage recognizes years of dedicated work, respect for the vine, and passion for life.

Let's discover together what this award really means—for the winery, for the wine itself, for wine lovers, and for the future of organic wine in France.

🏅 1. The Mâcon Competition: one of the largest wine competitions in France

Founded in 1954, the Concours des Grands Vins de France in Mâcon is one of the oldest and most prestigious French wine competitions. Each year, it brings together over 9,000 samples from all of France's wine-growing regions.

🔍 A rigorous and recognized competition

Blind tastings conducted by panels of professionals (oenologists, sommeliers, wine merchants, wine journalists).
A strict selection , with a percentage of medalists capped at around 30% to ensure the requirement.
Three medals awarded: Gold, Silver, Bronze – of which the silver medal is often synonymous with a high quality wine , balanced, expressive and well made.

🍇 Why this medal matters

This is not one of those competitions where you "buy" your diploma. A medal in Mâcon is a legitimate reward , often used as a benchmark by wine merchants, restaurateurs and importers. It is therefore a solid sales argument and an indicator of quality for consumers.

🌱 2. Le Château des Coccinelles: a committed estate, between tradition and ecology

Located in Domazan , in the Gard region, Château des Coccinelles is today a benchmark in the world of organic Côtes du Rhône wines . Its name is no coincidence: the ladybug, a natural helper of the vine, symbolizes the estate's commitment to respectful viticulture.

🏡 A story of family and convictions

For several generations, the Fabre family has cultivated its vines in Domazan with a strong ecological vision :

Conversion to organic farming as early as the 1970s — well before the current wave.
Respect for natural balances, refusal of synthetic pesticides, organic fertilization.
Soil work, biodiversity, manual selection of grapes.

🍷 A coherent and lively range

The estate now offers a full range of organic red, white and rosé wines , as well as vintages without added sulfites. All in a straightforward, pure, fresh and generous style - faithful to the expression of the terroirs of the southern Rhône .

🏆 3. A remarkable 2024 vintage, rewarded for its quality

🌤️ The conditions of the vintage

The 2024 vintage in the Côtes du Rhône looks very promising . Thanks to a cool spring followed by a hot but well-balanced summer in terms of water, the grapes were able to ripen slowly , retaining both:

a beautiful aromatic freshness ,
a controlled tannic intensity ,
and a beautiful natural structure .

🍇 A manual and rigorous harvest

True to its methods, Château des Coccinelles opted for manual harvesting , with sorting on the plot , in order to harvest only the best bunches. This helped to preserve the integrity of the berries, to promote natural fermentation and to obtain a balanced wine, without excess or artifice .

🥈 A well-deserved silver medal

The medal-winning vintage won over the jury of the Mâcon competition with:

its aromatic balance (ripe red fruits, spicy notes, floral hint),
its structured but supple mouth ,
its persistent, elegant finish , perfectly representative of the Côtes du Rhône appellation.

🔬 4. Deciphering the award-winning vintage

Here is a narrative technical sheet of the wine that received the silver medal:

🏷️ Name of the vintage (example to be adapted): Côtes du Rhône Rouge – Château des Coccinelles 2024

Appellation : AOC Côtes du Rhône
Vintage : 2024
Grape varieties : Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre (classic Rhône blend)
Certification : Organic wine (AB)
Harvesting method : manual, with sorting on the vine
Aging : stainless steel tank to preserve the fruit
Vinification : traditional, without exogenous yeasts, very few sulfites (or none depending on the vintage)

👃 On the nose

Aromas of jammy red fruits (cherry, raspberry), hint of garrigue, sweet spices (pepper, liquorice), floral touch (violet).

👄 In the mouth

Supple attack, round mouth, melted tannins, long and slightly peppery finish. A gourmet, typical and precise wine.

🍽️ Food and wine pairings

Perfect on:

a candied shoulder of lamb,
a Provençal ratatouille,
a Neapolitan pizza with grilled vegetables,
or simply a board of soft cheeses.

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