Rhone Valley Flashcards
4 styles of Rasteau
Rouge
Ambre
Blanc
Grenat and Tuile (Rouge)
Yves Cuilleron
The Cuilleron domaine dates back to 1920, founded by Yves’s grandfather Claude. The first domaine bottling was in 1947, labeled “Vin de Chavanay” Viognier and Syrah (the Saint-Joseph appellation did not exist then, and Chavanay was not yet part of the Condrieu appellation). Yves is a man on the move: He expanded the family holdings from 3.5 hectares to its current 59 hectares; he created a négociant business, Les Vins de Vienne, with Pierre Gaillard and Francois Villard in 1996; and he opened a restaurant with vigneron friends in Ampuis in 2007. The Cuilleron wines are all produced from vineyards the family owns or leases, and while they are focused on their traditional home region around Chavanay, they now also produce wines all the way from Côte-Rôtie in the north to Saint-Péray in the south.
Domaine Jamet
The Jamet domaine was founded by Joseph Jamet in the 1950s, and with the help of sons Jean-Paul and Jean-Luc, the Jamets began domaine bottling in 1976. The brothers took over the domaine in 1991 and have continually planted new vineyards and expanded the domaine, mostly in the northern sector of the appellation with its schist soils. Jamet firmly believes in the virtues of blending over the production of single-site wines (with one notable exception); the domaine’s Côte-Rôtie is typically a blend of their 25 parcels across 17 lieux-dits. In early 2013 Jean-Luc left the family domaine, reportedly taking two hectares of vineyards with him. However, news to date has been spotty about the split and may be worth following in the coming years.
Communes eligible for Rasteau AOP
Rasteau
Cairanne
Sablet
Rene Rostaing
René Rostaing started as a part-time vigneron in 1971 while supporting his family in real estate. He had married into Côte-Rôtie royalty: His wife’s father was Albert Dervieux; her uncle was Marius Gentaz—both legends of the appellation. Upon their retirement in the early 1990s, Rene and his wife inherited their vineyards and now have an impressive array of 20 plots across 14 lieux-dits, including old vines in some of the greatest terroirs of Côte-Rôtie. They have also purchased plots in Condrieu, including some older vines, and have developed hillside land just outside the Condrieu and Côte-Rôtie appellations, from which they produce Syrah and Viognier vins de pays.
What is often the blend in Chateau Rayas?
100% Grenache
Largest appellation in the Southern Rhone
Cotes du Rhone
Saint-Peray Styles and Blends
Blanc: Marsanne and Roussanne Blanc Mousseux (Méthode Traditionnelle)
Most prevalent grapes in Lirac
Grenache and Grenache Blanc
St-Joseph AOP
Syrah up to 10% Marsanne/Roussanne
Grape that dominates Beaucastel Blend
Mouvedre
5 Appellations that share 12.5% minimum alcohol with CDP
Vinsobres Cairanne Beaumes de Venise Gigondas Vacqueyras
Saint-Joseph AOP Soil
schist and gneiss on granite bedrock
Condrieu Soil
Decomposed Granite
Vacqueyras AOP Rouge Blend
Rouge:
Principal Variety: Grenache (min. 50%)
Complementary Varieties: Syrah and Mourvèdre (min. 20% combined Syrah and Mourvèdre), principal and complementary varieties must account for at least 90% of the total
Accessory Varieties: Max. 10% combined Brun Argenté, Carignan, Clairette Rosé, Counoise, Muscardin, Piquepoul Noir, and Terret Noir; max. 5% combined Bourboulenc, Viognier, Roussanne, Grenache Blanc, Grenache Gris, Clairette and Marsanne
Châtillon-en-Diois AOP Blends
Blanc: Chardonnay and Aligoté
Rouge: min. 75% Gamay, plus Pinot Noir and Syrah
Rosé: min. 75% Gamay, plus Pinot Noir and Syrah
Alain Voge
In 1958, at age 19, Alain Voge joined his father and the family business, making the then-radical decision to move away from mixed agriculture and toward a focus on wine. Eventually, the Voges began bottling and commercializing their own wine, and soon Alain expanded the family holdings in Cornas through purchases of historic and abandoned vineyard sites. Throughout the 1960s and 70s, he redeveloped these sites, eventually also moving into Saint-Péray and Saint-Joseph. Today Alain releases many different cuvées, which are typically based on vine age and oak treatment. In 2004, Albéric Mazoyer, a viticultural and winemaking advisor to Chapoutier since 1995, joined Alain in partnership.
Vincent Paris
Vincent Paris found his passion for the vine at a young age, producing his first vintage 1997 when he was just 23. Initially helped by his uncle Robert Michel, Vincent built his own cellar in 2001 and has since planted several new vineyards: Syrah in Cornas and Saint-Joseph, as well as Roussanne, Viognier and Merlot for Côtes du Rhône AOP and Vin de France bottlings. Upon his uncle’s retirement in 2006, Vincent was able to sign a 40-year lease on 1.2 hectares of Robert’s vineyards (which were purchased by an Anglo-Scandinavian group), including 0.73 hectares of the prized La Geynale.
E. Guigal
This world famous house was founded in 1946 by Étienne Guigal, who’d gotten his start in Côte-Rôtie at age 14 when he worked in the vineyards of Vidal-Fleury. Étienne’s son Marcel joined him in 1961 (age 18) after Étienne was suddenly struck blind. Together, they built the house of Guigal into the most recognizable name in Côte-Rôtie, and they brought the world’s attention to the wines of the appellation. In 1984, the two bought out Étienne’s former employer, Vidal-Fleury, along with their impressive array of vineyards… and in subsequent years, they went on to expand by buying Domaine de Bonserine, JL Grippat, de Vallouit, and the Château d’Ampuis. They folded the vineyards of Grippat and de Vallouit into their own production while keeping Domaine de Bonserine and Vidal-Fleury operating as separate entities. In addition, they now have their own cooperage to better control the quality of the wood for their aging program. While their very modern wines have not always been the favorite style of the older generation in Côte-Rôtie, Guigal has generally received a tip of the chapeau for the attention they brought to Côte-Rôtie and the continuing success of the appellation.
J L Chave
One of the legendary wine families of France, Domaine Jean-Louis Chave has, since 1481, been passed down from father to son for 16 generations. The family initially grew Saint-Joseph wines before phylloxera wiped out their vineyards on the hillsides above the domaine at Mauves. A wise ancestor chose to purchase land on the hill of Hermitage and rebuild the domaine there. Now widely considered the greatest grower on the hill, Chave makes world-class white and red Hermitage with exceptional ageability. One of the keys to the Chaves’ success is their ability to blend across multiple climats to create the best possible wine in any given year. To maintain this enviable track record, they do not produce single parcel “reserve” wines, believing that the blended wine is the best expression of the terroir of Hermitage. However, in top vintages they do produce 200 cases of a red, barrel-selection “Ermitage Cuvée Cathelin” that is as expensive as it is rare. Gérard Chave took over the domaine in 1970 and brought it to worldwide fame; his son Jean-Louis Chave is now in charge with a CV that includes studies in the United States. Jean-Louis has also built up the family’s négociant business, J.L. Chave Selection, presenting a more affordable opportunity to experience the family’s winemaking skills as their domaine wines have become increasingly rare and expensive.
How much of the Rhone valley’s wines are released as Cotes du Rhone?
over two thirds
Alain Graillot
Alain Graillot came to wine after a career as an agrochemical engineer. He founded his domaine in 1985 with a parcel of rented vineyards in Crozes-Hermitage. Even with no background in winemaking, he quickly rose to the pole position and today is considered one of the top names in Crozes. The majority of the estate’s production is in red Crozes-Hermitage, though a small amount of white is produced, as are tiny amounts of Hermitage and Saint-Joseph. Alain is now retired (on paper), and his son Maxime (who also makes his own Domaine des Lise and Equis wines) took over the estate in 2008.
How many grapes are in the Beaucastel Blend?
All of them
Beaumes-de-Venise AOP Rouge Blend
Rouge: Combined Min. 80% Grenache and Syrah (min. 50% Grenache, 25-50% Syrah), max. 10% combined Bourboulenc, Roussanne, Clairette, Grenache Blanc and Gris, Marsanne, Piquepoul Blanc, Ugni Blanc and Viognier; max. 20% combined Mourvèdre, Counoise, Muscardin, Piquepoul Noir and Terret Noir
Difference between Rasteau and Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise
Rasteau is more tawny while Mdbdv is fresher and more aromatic
What is mutage?
Stopping fermentation with grape spirits to retain sugar
13 (18) Varieties of Chateauneuf-de-Pape
Grenache (Noir/Blanc/Gris) Mourvèdre Syrah Cinsault Counoise Picpoul (Noir/Blanc/Gris) Terret Noir Bourboulenc Clairette/Clairette Rosé Roussanne Vaccarèse Picardan Muscardin
Traditional Aging and Vinification Northern Rhone
Foudres
Cote-Rotie AOP Blend
Syrah, up to 20% Viognier
Georges Vernay
Georges Vernay is a legendary figure in Condrieu, largely recognized for rescuing the appellation by internationally promoting the wines of the village when only eight hectares remained in cultivation in 1965. Georges began working in the vineyards with his father Francis at the age of 15, and today the estate is managed by his daughter Christine, who returned to the family domaine in 1996 to take over from her father—becoming the only female in the area to run a domaine at the time. The estate produces superb, elegant Condrieu wines, and Christine has markedly improved the quality of the reds. In addition to the flagship AOP wines produced here, the domaine produces excellent Vins de Pays wines from Viognier and Syrah grown in higher altitude vineyards on the plateau above Condrieu.
Clairette de Die AOP Blends
Blanc Mousseux (Méthode Traditionnelle): Clairette Méthode Dioise Ancestrale: min. 75% Muscat à Petits Grains plus Clairette
Pierre Gonon
Domaine Pierre Gonon produces reference-point Saint-Josephs from vineyards in communes that make up the traditional heart of the appellation: Mauves, Tournon and Saint-Jean-de-Muzols. Brothers Pierre and Jean have manned the domaine since 1989, and they feature a very traditional approach to winegrowing in the Northern Rhône: All of their vines are propagated by selection massale; viticulture is organic (the certification process is underway); and only one cuvée is generally made—no special selection wines are produced.
Size of Condrieu
Less than 200 ha
Crémant de Die AOP Blend
Blanc: Min. 55% Clairette, min. 10% Aligoté, 5-10% Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains
Hermitage AOP
Syrah up to 15% Marsanne/Roussanne
Crozes-Hermitage AOP
Syrah up to 15% Marsanne/Roussanne
Cornas Soil
Granite
Drome River is a tributary to what river?
Rhone
Vacqueyras AOP Rose Blend
Rosé:
Principal Varieties: Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah, and Mourvèdre (no single variety may account for more than 80%)
What wine do they make in Tavel?
Rose
Delas
Delas is a historic Northern Rhône house that, thanks to ownership changes, weathered some difficult periods from the 1970s to early 1990s. In 1977, the Delas family sold the house to Champagne house Deutz, who then sold to Champagne’s Louis Roederer in 1993. It was the arrival of winemaker Jacques Grange in 1997 that brought Delas back into the conversation of the top Northern Rhône producers. Grange revamped the winery: He eliminated the large, old cooperage in favor of barriques; he installed smaller concrete fermenters to vinify parcels individually; he quit using cultured yeasts and began replanting vineyards with selections massales to better express the local terroir.
Cornas AOP Blend
100% Syrah
Cote-Rotie Soil Types by Major Vineyard
Côte Blonde (south): gneiss
Côte Brune (north): mica-schistous rock
Cremant de Die Sparkling Wine Requirements
Traditional Method Secondary Fermentation
The wines must spend a min. 9 months on the lees prior to dégorgement, and may not be released for a min. 12 months after the date of tirage
Min. 3.5 atmospheres of pressure
Max. 15 g/l of residual sugar
Paul Jaboulet Aine
Founded in 1834 by Paul Jaboulet, Jaboulet Aîné (aîné means “older brother,” a reference to Paul) is one of the great, historic names in the Northern Rhône. The house stayed in the family through multiple generations until being sold in 2006 to the Swiss financier Jean-Jacques Frey (owner of Château La Lagune and a shareholder in Billecart-Salmon and Ayala). In the eyes of many critics, the quality of the Jaboulet wines had slipped, particularly since the early passing in 1997 of Gérard Jaboulet… yet Caroline Frey, now in charge of the winemaking, is keen to restore the house to its previous glory. The top Hermitage bottlings of the estate are named “La Chapelle” after the small chapel of Saint Christopher in the climat of l’Hermite; Jaboulet has owned the chapel itself since 1929 (though they own no vines in that climat).
Cairanne date of appellation
Early 2016
Chateau-Grillet Owner
Neyret-Gachet (sold to François Pinault in 2011)
Size of CDP Appellation
over 3000 ha
What percent of harvested grapes must be thrown out or declassified in CDP and why?
2% to protect against under ripeness
Coteaux de Die AOP Blend
100% Clairette
Domaine Faury
Philippe Faury took over this domaine in 1979, turning it from a mixed cultivation of grapes, cherries and apricots to a domaine focused on estate-bottled wine from an expanded roster of vineyards. Now with 17 hectares spread throughout Condrieu, Saint-Joseph, Côte-Rôtie and Vin de Pays vineyards, the domaine is in the hands of Philippe’s son, Lionel. The two work together to craft a very expressive lineup of traditional Northern Rhône wines.
3 Regional appellations in the southern part of the Southern Rhone (West to East)
Costieres de Nimes (West side of Rhone River)
Ventoux
Luberon
Northern Rhone Appellations North to South
Cote-Rotie Condrieu Chateau-Grillet (Within Condrieu) Saint-Joseph Hermitage/Crozes-Hermitage (West Side of River) Cornas Saint-Peray Clairette de Die Chatillion-en-Diois
What are Galets and what are their function?
Large round stones that store heat and release it at night, warming vines.
Where is Tavel Located?
South of Lirac
How much of the wine produced in the Rhone Valley is produced in the southern Rhone?
95%
Ogier
Michel Ogier began domaine-bottling in 1982, as the multi-generational domaine had previously sold all their wine to négociants (notably Guigal and Chapoutier). As the market for Northern Rhône wines was expanding quickly, by 1987 Ogier was bottling all of their wine under their own name. Michel’s son Stéphane joined the domaine full-time in 1998 at the age of 21, and he has now taken over completely, having brought tremendous youthful energy and enthusiasm to the domaine. He has expanded the estate holdings, started a négociant business and modernized the estate’s wines by using more new oak and less whole clusters in vinification. Stéphane has also followed other young growers across the river to Seyssuel where they now produce “L’Âme Sœur” from their vines at Le Vieux Château. Ogier has also purchased and leased vines in Condrieu since 2007.
4 Lieux-Dits of Cornas
Les Reynards
La Côte
Les Chaillot
Les Mazards
4 Appellations along Drome River
Coteaux de Die AOP and the sparkling wine appellation Crémant de Die AOP offer whites based wholly and partially, respectively, on Clairette. Clairette de Die AOP provides two styles of sparkling wines: méthode traditionnelle and méthode Dioise ancestrale and Châtillon-en-Diois AOP, a rarely seen Gamay appellation.
How many villages can append their name to Cotes du Rhone Villages labeled wines?
20
5 Appellations for Syrah in the Northern Rhone
Hermitage AOP Crozes-Hermitage AOP Cornas AOP Côte-Rôtie AOP St-Joseph AOP
Thierry Allemand
The son of a Valence factory worker, Thierry Allemand built his domaine from scratch after dropping out of school and discovering his love of the vine while working with Robert Michel. Thierry bought his first small plot in 1981 and continued to collect small plots here and there, tending his vines on the weekends while spending weekdays chez Michel (he only began working for himself fulltime in the mid-1990s). An inquiring mind, Thierry has continually evolved his winemaking. After starting out with a by-the-book approach, literally “making” his wines by adding yeast, tannin and enological enzymes as well as utilizing mechanical crushing and de-stemming, he abandoned all of these practices after seeking advice from older growers in the area, especially Noël and Louis Verset. He also eliminated racking and reduced the use of sulfur in his wines, believing that these two factors contributed to the perception of Cornas as a rustic, aggressive wine.
Chateau-Grillet Soil
Granitic Sand
Hermitage AOP Soil
granite with topsoils of mica, schist and gneiss
Vinsobres AOP Rouge Blend
Rouge:
Principal Variety: Min. 50% Grenache
Complementary Varieties: Mourvèdre and Syrah (min. 25% combined Mourvèdre and Syrah; min. 80% combined Grenache, Mourvèdre, and Syrah)
Accessory Varieties: Max. 20% combined Bourboulenc, Brun Argenté, Carignan, Cinsault, Clairette, Clairette Rosé, Grenache Blanc, Grenache Gris, Counoise, Marsanne, Muscardin, Piquepoul Blanc, Piquepoul Noir, Roussanne, Terret Noir, Ugni Blanc and Viognier (max. 5% white varieties)
Syrah and Mourvèdre may account for a min. 20% until the 2016 harvest
Min. 50% Grenache, and at least one complementary variety must be present in the blend.
Tavel Blend
Rosé: 30-60% combined Grenache Gris, Grenache Blanc, and Grenache Noir; Clairette, Clairette Rosé, Cinsault, Mourvèdre, Piquepoul Blanc, Piquepoul Gris, Piquepoul Noir, and Syrah; max. 10% each Calitor and Carignan (blanc and noir)
Assemblage: Grenache Noir must be present in the blend
VdN Appellations Southern Rhone
Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise
Rasteau
M. Chapoutier
Michel Chapoutier took over this venerable family firm in 1990 at the age of 26. He immediately instigated changes that would have many critics place M. Chapoutier at the top of the list of quality Rhône producers. He lowered the yields in their vineyards, converted the estate vineyards to biodynamic farming in 1995 and began producing single-site micro-cuvées that rapidly became collector’s items. He also made the Chapoutier bottle labels the first in the world to have Braille descriptions. Michel is a man of boundless energy: In addition to growing the estate’s Rhône holdings and raising their image worldwide, he’s also founded estates in Australia and Portugal.
Auguste Clape
The Clape family has a 250-year history working as vignerons, though they were forced to start from scratch in Cornas after relocating from the Languedoc due to the grower strikes of 1906 and 1907. Auguste Clape, who took over in 1949, is widely credited as the first to practice domaine-bottling in Cornas in 1957, using fruit from vineyards planted by his wife’s grandfather. He was joined by his son Pierre-Marie in 1989, who now runs the domaine with his son Olivier. For many people, this is the gold standard domaine in Cornas.
Crozes-Hermitage AOP Soil Type
North: Granitic slopes, similar to Hermitage
South: Alluvial soils of glacial origin
Where is Lirac located?
Western Shore of the Rhone opposite CDP
Gigondas AOP Blend
Min. 90% combined Grenache (min. 50%), Syrah, and Mourvèdre (min. 15% Syrah and Mourvèdre); plus Bourboulenc, Brun Argentè, Cinsault, Clairette, Clairette Rosé, Counoise, Grenache Blanc and Gris, Marsanne, Muscardin, Piquepoul Blanc and Noir, Roussanne, Terret Noir, Ugni Blanc, Viognier
Franck Balthazar
Franck Balthazar left his job at a Valence engineering company to return to the family domaine and take over from his father René in 2002. The domaine was founded in 1931 by René’s father Casmir, who had a small plot of vines as well as cereal grains on the côteau of Cornas. When Franck returned, the domaine owned two hectares of vines, which he has expanded to its current 3.5 hectares. This is an excellent producer of traditionally styled Cornas.
4 Major Producers of Hermitage
the singular Jean-Louis Chave négociants: Delas M. Chapoutier Jaboulet
Grignan-les-Adhémar AOP was formerly known as what and why did they change the name?
Hoping to rebound sales and avoid an unsavory association with the troubled Tricastin nuclear plant, the producers of Côtes du Tricastin successfully rebranded their appellation as Grignan-les-Adhémar in 2010
First estate bottled wine in CDP
Chateau le Nerthe in 1738
Minimum Alcohol of CDP red wines?
12.5%, Highest for dry AOP wines in all of France
