Rhône Valley Flashcards
In what year was Beaumes de Venise awarded AOP status?
2005
What styles of wine are produced under the Beaumes de Venise AOP?
Exclusively Dry Still Reds from min 50% Grenache plus 25-50% Syrah plus other Mediterranean grapes.
What are the styles produced under the Muscat de Beaumes de Venise AOP? Min RS?
Fortified Blanc, Rouge, and Rosé
Min RS 100g/L
What is the Rhone’s only sweet, fortified white wine appellation?
Muscat de Beaumes de Venise AOP
What is the name of the second wine produced by Château Grillet?
Pontcin
Whose work was responsible for what would become the framework of the entire Appellation Contrôlée system?
Baron Le Roy of Château Fortia
What is the minimum alcohol for Châteauneuf-du-Pape?
min 12.5% (Highest in France)
What is the max yield for Châteauneuf-du-Pape? What is it including the râpé?
Max Yield: 35hl/ha; 42hl/ha including râpé
What are the grapes permitted for the production of Châteauneuf-du-Pape?
Red: Grenache Syrah Mourvèdre Cinsaut Muscardin Vaccarèse Piquepoul Noir Terret Noir Counoise
White: Grenache Blanc Grenache Gris Clairette Clairette Rose Bourboulenc Roussanne Picardan
What are the 5 communes of production for Châteauneuf-du-Pape from north to south?
Orange Courthézon Bédarrides Sorgues Châteauneuf-du-Pape lies to the west and bordered by the previous 4 from north to south as listed above.
In what commune is Château Rayas, Château Beaucastel, and Clos du Caillou located?
Courthézon
What is the commune of Vieux Telegraph?
Béddarides
What are 5 top producers of Châteauneuf-du-Pape?
Château Rayas Château de Beaucastel Domaine du Pegau Vieux Telegraph Domaine de la Janesse Henri Bonneau
What is the grape of Château de Beaucastel Blanc?
100% Roussanne
What river marks the southern boundary of Crozes-Hermitage?
Isère
What is the most famous of the Côtes du Rhone Villages on the right bank and what styles are made there? On what river is it located?
Chusclan
Dry still red and rosé of which is said to be the most prized style and similar to neighboring Tavel AOP
Located on the Cèze River
On what river is the Clairette de Die AOP located?
Drôme
What method is used to produced Clairette de Die AOP Brut?
Traditional Method
What is the main grape and min % for Clairette de Die Méthode Ancestrale? Other grape permitted?
Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains
Min 75% plus Clairette
What are the appellations of Cellier Hannibal?
Châtillon-en-Diois AOP and Clairette de Die AOP
Still red and white wine made in the Clairette de Die AOP is bottled under what appellation?
Châtillon-en-Diois AOP
The top wines of Chavanay are bottled under what appellation?
Condrieu AOP
What is the name of the prized soil type of Condrieu? What is it composed of?
Arzelle; composed of decomposed mica
Who is the producer of “La Doriane” and what is the appellation?
Guigal; Condrieu AOP
What are two monopole AOP in France outside of Burgundy?
Château Grillet AOP
Coulée de Serrant AOP
Savenierrès-Coulée de Serrant AOP
Between how many years should Condrieu be drunk?
Drunk young, between 2-4 years
What are 5 top producers of Cornas?
Thierry Allemand Auguste Clape Vincent Paris Domaine Courbis Domaine du Tunnel Alain Voge
What is the southernmost appellation in the Rhône Valley?
Costieres de Nimes AOP
Who is largely responsible for the renaissance of the Côte Rôtie wine region in the 1970s?
Marcel Guigal
What are Guigal’s 4 La Las?
La Mouline
La Landonne
La Turque
La Reynard
The best vineyards in Côte Rôtie have what directional aspect?
Southeast where they can simultaneously receive ample sunshine while being protected from the aggressive Mistral.
What is the name for the traditional guyot vine training technique in Côte Rôtie that uses one or two stakes to help hold the vine in place?
Echalas
What are 5 top producers of Côte Rôtie?
Guigal Rostaing Jamet Michel Ogier JM Gerin
What are 4 producers of La Landonne?
Rostaing
Guigal
Delas
JM Gérin
What is the Northern Rhônes largest appellation and how much more wine than Hermitage does it produce?
Crozes-Hermitage; 11 times more wine is produced here.
What are 5 top producers of Crozes-Hermitage?
Graillot Domaine Belle Domaine des Lises Yann Chave Domaine des Entrefaux
Why is Crozes-Hermitage typically fruitier and softer than Hermitage?
The soils here are richer in clay and the wines aren’t as often matured in oak as in Hermitage.
What is the appellation of Domaine de Thalabert and who owns it?
Crozes-Hermitage; Jaboulet
In what appellation is the Les Chassis vineyard located and why is it important?
Crozes-Hermitage; said to produce the best expressions of the appellation.
What are the color, styles, and sweetness levels of wine produced in the Duché d’Uzès AOP?
Dry, still white, red, and rosé
What crossing led to Syrah?
Dureza x Mondeuse Blanche
Who is considered the father of modern ampelography?
Pierre Galet
What are the similarities and differences between Gigondas and Châteauneuf-du-Pape?
Max Yields are similar 35hl/ha for CDP and 36hl/ha for Gigondas.
Min abv is identical at 12.5%
Both require a triage of less ideal fruit (Le Râpé)
Largely the same blend of Grapes
Gigondas is higher in altitude and the soils are higher in limestone content.
Unlike CDP, Gigondas may be produced as a rosé in addition to red and white.
Why was the prestige of Gigondas less than CDP for so long?
For the longest time it qualified only for Côtes-du-Rhône until 1966 when it was elevated to Côtes-du-Rhône-Villages. AOP was achieved in 1971.
In what year did Grignan-les-Adhémar receive its appellation name? What was it known as previously and why did the name change?
2010; previously Coteaux du Tricastin
Name changed due to its associated with the nuclear meltdown of the Tracstin nuclear plant.
What does the E in E. Guigal stand for?
Éstablissements
What is the appellation of “La Doriane” and who produces it?
Condrieu; produced by Guigal
What is the principal soil type of Hermitage?
Granite
On what side of the hill of Hermitage are the most prized climats for red wine? Why is this?
The western side due to the exposure and higher average temperatures here
What are 7 top climats of Hermitage?
Les Bessards Le Méal L'Ermite Les Gréffieux Les Diognières Beaume Maison Blanche Péléat Le Murets La Croix Rocoule Les Signeaux
Which soils are best for red wines on the hill of Hermitage? White wine?
The granite soils are best for Syrah and the clay/limestone soils are best for the Marsanne and Roussanne for white wine.
What are the max yields for red and white wine respectively in the Hermitage AOP? Vin de Paille?
Red: 40hl/ha
White: 45hl/ha
Vin de Paille: 15hl/ha
What are the respective producers from the following wines?
Cuvée Cathelin
Le Pavillon
La Chapelle
Le Gréal
Cuvée Cathelin: Chave
Le Pavillon: MIchel Chapoutier
La Chapelle: Paul Jaboulet
Le Gréal: Marc Sorrel
What is the producer, appellation, and style of “Chante Alouette”?
Chapoutier; Hermitage; dry, still white from 100% Marsanne
The name Hermitage has been the syonym for what grapes in what countries?
Shiraz in Australia
Cinsault in South Africa
Marsanne in Switzerland
What is the parentage of Syrah?
Mondeuse Blanche x Dureza
“Chey” refers to what in Cote Rotie?
Dry stone wall terraces
Which producer inherited vines from Gentaz-Dervieux?
Rene Rostaing
What style of wine can be made in Cairanne AOP?
Dry still blanc and rouge
What was the last vintage of Noel Verset?
Retired in 2000 but the last vintage was 2006
What is the name of the wind that blows down from the Alps across Lake Geneva and makes its way through the Rhone Valley?
What other wind heavily influences the Rhone Valley?
La Bise as it blows through the Northern Rhone.
Le Mistral
What was the first vintage of Cuvee Cathelin?
1990
What communes may qualify for wine from Rasteau AOP?
Rasteau, Sablet, and Cairanne
What is the minimum percentage of Grenache present in Rasteau AOP rouge?
min 50%
Where does the Rhone River begin and end?
Begins in Valais in Switzerland and ends in the Mediterranean Sea
What is the department of CDP?
Vaucluse
What is the maximum yield of CDP including the rapé?
Max 35 hl/ha
What is le râpé?
A minimum of 2% of the harvested grapes must be used for table wine or discarded. This 2% is known as le râpé
What is the largest climat of Hermitage?
Les Bessards
What are two producers of Chaillots in Cornas?
Frank Balthazar and Thierry Allemand
What are echalas as it relates to Côte Rôtie?
Single post vine training system traditional in Côte-Rôtie which functions to protect from fierce winds while promoting more exposure
What is the second wine of Château Grillet and what is the first vintage of this?
Pontcin; 2011
Hermitage is located within what departement?
Drôme
What departement is St. Joseph located within?
Ardeche
What are 3 Lieux-Dits of Condrieu AOP?
Chanson Chery Vernon Côtes Blonde Les Eyguets
The Chaban stream is a feature of what AOP?
Cornas
Which grape varieties of CDP must be trained Au Carré?
Grenache and Mourvedre
What is the southern-most AOP of the Rhône Valley?
Costieres de Nimes AOP
What is the first vintage of Beaucastel “Hommage a Jacques Perrin”? What grape makes up most of the blend?
1989; mostly from old-vine Mourvedre
Grapes destined for Vin de Paille in Hermitage must be dried for how long?
min 45 days
What is the first vintage of Guigal La Landonne?
1978
What grapes are permitted in the production of Vacqueyras that are not allowed for CDP?
Marsanne, Viognier, and Carignan
How much Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvèdre must be present in Vacqueyras Rouge?
Min 90% Combined
Min 50% Grenache
Min 20% Syrah and/or Mourvèdre
True or False, Vacqueyras may be produced from a single varietal? CDP?
False, however CDP is permitted to be produced from a single varietal.
