Wset - the Southern Rhône Flashcards
What’s the terrain like in The Southern Rhône?
It’s much flatter than the north.
Most of the best sited have very stone soils that absorbes the sun’s heat and warm the vineyard, adding ripening.
What’s the stone’s in Châteauneuf-du-Pape called?
Galets.
What’s the climate like in the Southern Rhône?
Medeterrainean, with mild winters and warm dry summers when drought can be a problem.
What’s the northern wind in the Southern Rhône called?
and what’s the consequences of it?
Mistal is the name of the wind that gain speed and can cause extensive damage to vineyards. There are fewer slopes to protect the vines from the wine, meaning windbreaks have to be planted.
From the most part, Grenache is bush-trained low to the ground to offer protection from the wind and to benefit from the warmth of the soil.
Syrah is more easily damaged in the wind than Grenache and it benefits from the support offered by the training system
Is it common doing blends in the Southern Rhône?
Yes, wines are often complex blends, in certain cicumstances wines are made from a dozen or more grape varieties.
Which is the dominante grape variety in the Southern Rhône? And what’s the characteristics for it?
Grenache
The warm summers mean that Grenache can ripen fully here, producing wines with concentrated spiced red fruit flavours.
hot years: flavours can become baked and jammy.
Which two grape varieties play a supporting role to Grenache?
Syrah and Mourvèdre
Cinsault when it comes to fresh, fruity rosé
What does Syrah provide a blend?
and where does it thrive?
Extra colour and tannins, but it an struggle in the hottest sites.
What does Mourvèdre provide a blend?
and where does it thrive?
deeply coloured and very high tannins,
fully ripe: dense black fruit flavours.
It is at the northern limit of where it can ripen fully and successfully.
The style of wine vary a lot depending on the winemaker, give an exempel of what different styles it can vary from?
from a light- to medium-bodied fresh, fruit wines with low tannins to highly tannic full-bodied reds with flavours of spice, meat and/or earth
The techniques used vary a lot depending on the winemaker, give an exempel of what different techniques it can vary from?
techniques can vary form cold pre-fermentation maceration and storage in stainless steel to warm extractive fermentations in traditional open fermenters and maturation in large oak vessels.
Which white grape varieties are used in the Southern Rhône?
clairette, grenache blanc, bourboulenc, viognier, marsanne and roussanne
What’s the characteristics for the best whites from the Southern Rhône?
usually richly textured and full-bodied, high in alc,with low to medium acidity and subtle fruity aromas.
New oak is rarely used.
Châteauneuf-du-Pape, 13 grape varieties?
grenache (noir, gris and blanc)
syrah
mourvèdre
cinsault
counoise
bourboulenc
roussanne
vaccarese (brun argente)
clairette (blanc, rosé)
muscardin
picardan
piquepoul (noir, gris, blanc)
terret noir
Which appellation accounts for more than half of the entire production in the Southern Rhône?
Côtes du Rhône
What’s the typical characteristics for a wine under the appellation Côtes du Rhône?
Most reds are medium-bodied, fruity, but simple wines.
Rosés and white wines are made under this appellation to.
Within the appellation Côtes du Rhône, a number of villafes are entitled to call their red, and some white and rosé a different name, which?
And what’s the characteristics of that kind of wine?
Côtes du Rhône Villages
They are have more stringent minimum alcohol levels and maximum yields must be observed and a greater percentage of the blend must be made from Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre.
Some individual villages can add their name on the label if 100% comes the named village.
Give an exempel of an village that’s allowed to add their name on the label under a Côtes du Rhône Villages.
And what’s make this appellation different from a normal Côtes du Rhône
Côtes du Rhône Villages Séguret.
These have more body, structure and spiced red fruit flavours than generic Côtes du Rhône.
All of these named villages have the option to apply for cru status.
Which is the largest of all the crus in the Rhône valley?
Châteauneuf-du-Pape
the first area to have Appellation contrôlée status
Why are there a lot of diversity among the red wines from Châteauneuf-du-Pape?
cause there’s wide range of soil types, aspect and the large number of grape varieties winemakers can choose from, 13st.
Which grape variety dominates? and which is the “second” one?
Grenache
Mourvèdre
What’s the characteristics of the best wines from Châteauneuf?
full-bodied and richly textured with concentrated spiced red fruit flavours that balance the characteristic high alcohol.
Which are the only two southern crus that are on the west bank of the Rhône?
Tavel and Lirac
What do they produce in Tavel?
and which is the most common grape varieties?
Tavel is an AC for rosé wines only, made mainly from Grenache and Cinsault
What’s the characteristics for a rosé from Tavel?
full-bodied comparied with Provance rosés, intensley flavoured and capable of developing greater complexity when aged in bottle.
What do they produce in Lirac?
best known for top-quality red and white wines in the style of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, but even a small production rosé.
Which are the two most long-standing of these crus in the Southern Rhône?
Gigondas
Vacqueyars
What do they produce and what’s the characteristics of wines form Gigondas and Vacqueyars?
They make red wines, usually Grenache-led blends, in similar full-bodied, spicy style to Châteaneuf-du-Pape and many of the wines are as good as those that come from the more famous appellation.
