Northern Rhone

Question 1

How long is the Rhone River?

Answer 1

250 miles / 400 kilometers
flows from the Swiss border to the Mediterranean

Question 2

Terrior overall

Answer 2

Cooler and wetter than Southern Rhone, especially in the winter. Largely granite soil.

Question 3

What river confluence happens in Lyon?

Answer 3

The Saone & Rhone rivers meet

Question 4

How does the rainfall differ from Southern Rhone?

Answer 4

Valence gets 36 inches / 915 mm
Avignon gets 26 inches / 660 mm
This explains why the North is green and the South is mediterranean

Question 5

What is the break between N & S Rhone

Answer 5

The town of Montlimar

Question 6

Cornas producers that helped “revive the region”

Answer 6

Thierry Allemand *
August Clape *
Eric and Joel Durand
Guillaume Gilles *
Vincent Paris *
Stephane Robert of Domaine du Tunnel

Question 7

Commonly seen Cornas producers

Answer 7

Noël Verset *
Domaine Jean-Michel*
Domaine Jamet *
Franck Balthazar *
Domaine Bott
Julien Cécillon
Aurelien Chatagnier
Domaine du Coulet
Equis
Jean Lionnet
Robert Michel
Alain Verset (Noel Verset’s nephew)
Alain Voge
Andrea Calek
Pierre Gonon
Rene Rostaing
Hervé Souhaut
Georges Vernay

Question 8

How long is St. Joseph?

Answer 8

40 miles / 60 km
from Condrieu to Cornas

Question 9

What 6 communes was St. Joseph originally made of?

Answer 9

Glun, Mauves, Tournon, St-Jean-de-Muzols, Lemps, and Vion
W/ Chavanay in Condrieu they are all steep granitic slopes

Question 10

When did St. Joseph expand?

Answer 10

1969 it expanded from 6 to 26 communes
from 240 to 3,200 acres / 97 to 1,296 ha

Question 11

How many N Rhone communes are Cotes du Rhone?

Answer 11

47

Question 12

St. Joseph notable producers

Answer 12

Chave *
Guigal *
Chapoutier
Gonon *
Courbis
Coursodon
Delas *
Gripa
Monier-Perrol *
Stephane Montez
Andre Perret *

Question 13

Commonly seen St. Joseph producers

Answer 13

Graeme et Julie Bott *

Domaine Rousset
Hervé Souhaut
Julien Cécillon
Christophe Curtat
Dard & Ribo
Equis
Guy Farge
Domaine Faury
Mathilde et Yves Gangloff
Alain Graillot
Saint Cosme
Jean-Michel Stephan
Clusel-Roch

Question 14

Saint Peray

Answer 14

Just south of Cornas
Excellent Marsanne & Roussane
Known for sparkling and “nervy” still whites

Question 15

Cremant di Die / Clairette de Die Tradition

Answer 15

Produces near the river Drome just east of St. Peray in high altitude vineyards
mainly Muscat and Clairette

Question 16

Who brought Cotie-Rotie fame?

Answer 16

Marcel Guigal in the 1980s

Question 17

Describe Cotie-Roties wines

Answer 17

magical soft, floral, fruity finesse, southern in warmth but closer to a great red burgundy when it comes to tannins

Question 18

Cotie-Rotie is how old?

Answer 18

Roman times or earlier
Up to the 19th century it was sold by 76 liters/ 20 gallons

Question 19

Cotie-Rotie acreage 1971 vs 2017

Answer 19

1971: 173 acres / 70 ha
2017: 761 acres / 308 ha
The price has risen like crazy too

Question 20

How steep are the slopes of Cotie-Rotie?
Soil?

Answer 20

Up to a 69% grade
Schist and mica

Question 21

What practice has diluted Cotie-Roties reputation?

Answer 21

Planting on the plateau above where grapes struggle to ripen

Question 22

What were Cotie-Rotie’s original vineyards centered around?

Answer 22

2 slopes just above the town of Ampius
Cote Blonde and Cote Brune

Question 23

Cote Blonde

Answer 23

part of the greater Massif Central
has more granite
soft top soil
different plots of sand/silt with a pale limestone element
produces wines softer and more early-developing than cote brun

Question 24

Cote Brun

Answer 24

Schist and clay darkened with iron
tighter, smokier wines

Question 25

Who started the trend in Cotie-Rotie to designate vineyard sites?

Answer 25

Guigal in the 1980s La Landonne, La Mouline, La Turque aged for 42 months in new oak (BIG) "as close as any producer has gotten to creating a new Romanee-Conti"

Question 26

Who produces more classic styles of Cotie-Rotie?

Answer 26

Barge * Gangloff Jamet * Jasmine Levet Rene Rostaing's Cote Blonde

Question 27

What is Cotie-Rotie's most long-lived "LaLaLa"? (It is the only one that is offically recognized)

Answer 27

La Landonne Bottled by Guigal, Jean-Michel Gerin, and Rostaing

Question 28

Guigal's "La Mouline"

Answer 28

Created in 1966 a sumptuous, velvety monster

Question 29

Guigal's "La Turque"

Answer 29

Created in 1985 located high above the city of Ampius more traditional in style

Question 30

Chateau d'Ampius

Answer 30

Guigal recently bought them a blend of 7 sites throughout Cote Blonde & Brun Marcel Guigal's parents worked here as children

Question 31

Cotie-Rotie producers

Answer 31

Billon Bernard Burgaud the Bonnefeilds Clusel-Roch Duclaux Jean-Michel Gerin Garon Stephanie Ogier Domaine de Rosiers Jean-Michel Stephan

Question 32

Cotie-Rotie merchants

Answer 32

Chapoutier Delas Jaboulet Vidal-Fleury (owned by Guigal) Guigal

Question 33

What grapes are in Cotie-Rotie?

Answer 33

Up to 20% Viognier allowed 0-5% is most common Guigals "La Mouline" has 10%

Question 34

Condrieu soil

Answer 34

crumbled, sanded granite

Question 35

Is viognier easy or difficult to cultivate?

Answer 35

Very difficult as it is disease prone and unreliable low-yielding

Question 36

When was Condrieu classified?

Answer 36

1940 traditionally sweet wine

Question 37

Who are Condrieu's top producers of classical, fragrant, dry Viognier?

Answer 37

Georges Vernay, Coteau du Vernon Guigal, "La Doraine" (a blend from Cote Chatillon and Colombier vineyards) Yves Cuilleron Yves Gangloff * Remi and Robert Niero

Question 38

Condrieu acreage 1960 vs 2017

Answer 38

1960: 30 acres / 12 ha 2017: 487 acres / 197 ha

Question 39

Condrieu N&S limits

Answer 39

(north) Hill above Condrieu: said to produce particularly rich wines (south) Chavanay: A commune at the southern tip of Condrieu with heavier granite content, said to produce wines with more minerality

Question 40

What characteristic do top Condrieu vineyards share? Name them.

Answer 40

All have powdery mica-rich topsoil called arzelle Chery, Chanson, Cote Bonnette, and Les Eygets

Question 41

The most unusual Viognier

Answer 41

Chateau Grillet * 8.6 acres / 3.5 ha of ampitheatre delimited in 1936 has recently been upgraded by Artemis Domaines of Francois Pinault who owns Chateau Latour

Question 42

Common Condrieu producers

Answer 42

André Perret * Domaine Bott * Clos de la Bonnette Domaine Jamet René Rostaing Domaine Jean-Michel Stephan Georges Vernay Domaine Monier Perréol Clusel-Roch