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 Domaine
Clusel-Roch -
Côte
Rotie
Brigitte Roch and Gilbert Clusel have a massive
four (which probably is in this super-steep, small-parcelled wine area)
organically farmed hectares (10 acres) lying in, or on rather, the almost legendary "roasted
slope" appellation, plus a few rows in nearby Condrieu; and their cellar
is located in the village of Verenay close to more famous Ampuis (home of
Guigal among others) alongside the Rhone in the so-called "northern" region
(if you see what I mean). I tried all their reds, I think, all of them
100% Syrah, at this year's (2010) Millésime Bio wine fair in Montpellier:
2006 Côte Rotie - quite a bit of spicy wood still dominating the nose;
smoky and peppery vs ripe and rounded palate, fairly elegant in the end
actually. 87
2007 Côte Rotie - similar aroma/flavour profile but richer and fruitier
too, velvety vs firm mouthfeel and finish; needs time to express itself
better. 88
2007 Les Grandes Places Côte Rotie - from a specific "lieu-dit"
plot: attractive herbal spicy black peppery and black cherry notes; again
relatively soft and elegant palate then tight and punchy on the finish.
89+
2008 Côte Rotie - juicier and less oaky on the nose; showing
nice fruit overlaid with touches of creamy oak, solid but subtle finish.
87
2009 Côte Rotie (barrel sample) - lush with lively fruit,
firm and spicy mouthfeel with good weight and tight framework; should be
good. 89
www.domaine-clusel-roch.fr
 Clos
du Joncuas - Gigondas
More than just Gigondas actually, as the Chastan family (Dany, Fernand
and Carole) has 29 organic hectares (72 acres) in total around the latter
village, Séguret and Vacqueyras; all nestling quietly in that southern
Rhone paradise valley. Well, not always: it snowed quite a bit there this
year I believe. I digress... they've been doing the organic thing since
the beginning, 1989, with a hint of biodynamics now thrown in too. My
tastebuds got stuck in to the following reds at this year's Millésime Bio
show in Montpellier (2010):
2004 Séguret Côtes du
Rhône Villages (Grenache
70% plus Carignan,
Mourvèdre etc.) - maturing smoky nose with dark savoury notes;
chunky firm mouthfeel vs mature fruit, a tad old with extracted tannins
but quite nice still (with food). 85
2004 Vacqueyras (Grenache 80% +
Syrah etc.) - enticing herbal minty spicy
aromas underpinned by maturing black fruits; powerful and pretty grippy
still yet lush too, big old tannins layered with nice savoury vs dark
fruit finish. 87
2004 Gigondas (Grenache 80%,
Mourvèdre, Cinsault,
Syrah) - similar profile to above but more
complex, developing meaty fruit; again very grippy tannins but I like that
lush sweet vs savoury fruit underneath. 88
2005 Gigondas - richer smokier nose and palate, lovely
concentration vs firm structure; smoky, liquoricey and peppery finish.
Quite wow. 88-90
www.closdujoncuas.fr
Domaine La
Fourmente - Visan
This 46-hectare (110-acre)
organic estate (since 2005) is owned by Rémi and Valérie Pouizin and found
in the Côtes du Rhône Villages Visan appellation (a bit longwinded to say
but now producing some superb reds, as you can see), which lies a good bit
northeast of Orange and north of Cairanne or Rasteau. They also produce
natural lavender oil, by the way: I tried to copy one of the nice pics of
lavender fields off their website, but it must be an annoying "flash"
thing as I couldn't! See for yourself @
www.domainelafourmente.com. These were sampled at Millésime Bio in
Montpellier (January 2010), a bit of a discovery, I'd say, especially
those two 100% Grenaches:
2009 Nature rosé (Grenache
Syrah)
- clean and fruity, crisp and juicy; nice enough quaffer.
80+
2009 Amour de Fruit Côtes
du Rhône (Cinsault
Grenache
Syrah)
- attractive juicy fruity style with a
bit of grip and substance too. 85
2009
Nature Visan
(Grenache
Syrah)
- richer spicier Syrah-prominent style (although with more Grenache
actually), perfumed black cherry fruit vs chunky tannins, lush and
peppery; yum, promising. 87+
2007 Les Vieux Grenache des Garrigues
Visan (14%) - sexy liquorice, spice and dark leather edges; very rich and
concentrated vs uplifting floral peppery notes; dark lush fruit turning
savoury, firm and powerful finish. Wow. 92-94
2007 La Fourmente Grains Sauvages (old
Grenache) - delicious liquorice, dark plum and spice notes; "sweet"
vs floral fruit too, gripping tannins on a very tasty finish; perhaps
firmer and tighter than above, but similarly gorgeous!
90-92
 Château
La Nerthe -
Châteauneuf-du-Pape
This simply famous estate has been in the hands of the Richard family
since 1985, the latest in a line of owners spanning its, well,
historic long history. The vineyards were first converted over to organic
growing back in 1998, one of few in Châteauneuf-du-Pape actually (you have
to wonder why?), which must be a challenge for estate boss Christian Voeux
and his team managing 80 ha (200 acres) accordingly; while probably being
surrounded by non-organic spraying neighbours (it's a compact
appellation). Their impressive "Cadette" cuvée is sourced from a
particularly senior and cherished plot with 100+ year-old Grenache and
their oldest
Mourvèdre
and Syrah. And the powerful yet complex Clos de Beauvenir white shows how well good
white CNdP can age.
I tasted these wines with Christian at the earthy Millésime Bio show,
Jan 2010 in Montpellier:
2008 La Nerthe white (Clairette Grenache
blanc Roussanne Marsanne Bourboulenc
among others) - a bit closed on the nose to start
with, moving on to a much more exotic palate vs mineral and light wood
spice notes; oily and weighty mouthfeel vs nice juicy, yeast-lees tinged
finish. €28 87+
2004
Clos de Beauvenir white
(Roussanne Clairette)
- lots of hazelnut and oily maturing notes, rounded and creamy mouthfeel
vs fair bit of oomph; long mellowing finish but certainly not old. €57
89+
2007 La Nerthe red (Grenache
Syrah
Mourvèdre
Cinsault & others)
- lovely rich Grenache-styled, liquorice and spice aromas followed by a
tad of sweet oak although subtle; dark ripe fruit explosion with firm and
fiery backdrop, tight closed up finish yet plenty of delicious fruit.
Promising. €30 90-(92)
2005 cuvée des Cadettes (Grenache
Syrah
Mourvèdre) -
showing more wood but there's lots of maturing sweet fruit underneath;
attractive dry vs ripe tannins, actually finishing more elegantly than I
thought it was going to! €62 90+
2006 cuvée des Cadettes (Grenache
Syrah
Mourvèdre) -
more developed and leather-edged supported by sumptuous fruit,
concentrated vs firm palate; again big and bold but lush and dark too, dry
texture vs intensity and great finish. €63.50 92+
Route de Sorgues, 84230 Châteauneuf-du-Pape.
www.chateaulanerthe.fr,
04 90 83 70 11.
 M. Chapoutier - Tain
l'Hermitage
Apart from their all-encompassing Rhone Valley presence and portfolio
(just about everywhere from north to south), Michel Chapoutier has his
largely organic/biodynamic fingers in other pies, notably the
Roussillon,
Australia (Victoria and South Australia) and Portugal (Estremadura).
However, the company is perhaps best known as "the biggest landowner in
Hermitage," as it says in their corporate blurb, that somewhat
sought-after appellation where they have 34 hectares/85 acres. So, they
make a few different wines sourced from these revered, and pretty awesome
hillside vineyards. The two below, tasted in December 2009, fit into their
"prestige" range meaning they're Chapoutier's most famous, and dearest,
Hermitage "cru" labels: the white comes from three plots with different
soils and aspects called "Le Méal", "Les Murets" and "Chante-Alouette"
itself; and the red from "Les Bessards", "Le Méal" and "Les Greffieux."
2006 "Chante-Alouette" white Hermitage (Marsanne 14.5%) - exotic and
lightly toasted nose with apricot, honeysuckle and oily/nutty aromas;
similar flavours and mouthfeel, pretty big rounded
"oxidative" style with nice dry bite and a touch of not
unattractive wood texture in
the background. Wow, definitely a foodie drinking quite well now although
I'm sure it'll develop further as, after that wonderful nose and initial
flavours, it closes up a bit on the finish. Next day: creamier, honeyed
and more hazelnuttty with oily texture and nice oomph.
Fr online €37; UK £36 Tanners, the Wine Society.
90+
2006 "Monier de la Sizeranne" red Hermitage (Syrah
14%) - wild smoky complex nose with meaty/animal notes, white pepper and
dark black cherry, damson and liquorice; lush fruit vs dry grainy coating
on the palate, ballsy and mouth-filling followed by attractive bite and
length, actually fairly subtle finish closing up giving the impression it
needs 2-3 years to express itself better. This was confirmed after 2 days
open, as it really opened up showing more liquorice and dark fruits,
turning meatier and savoury with dry tannins vs sweet fruit and peppery
undertones.
Fr online €49; UK £45 Edencroft Fine Wine, Tanners,
the Wine Society. 89-91
Click here
for a couple of Chapoutier's Roussillon reds and
here for
a bit of Crozes stuff. Not surprisingly, their wines are well-distributed
around the world. More @
www.chapoutier.com.
 Ogier
& Clos de l'Oratoire - Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Ogier has been part of the quietly mammoth Languedoc-based JeanJean Group since
1994 and bought the famous Clos de l'Oratoire estate in 2000. However, the
family behind Ogier, currently headed up by Jean-Pierre
Durand,
has deep roots in Châteauneuf (founded in 1859) and further
afield in the Rhône valley: their Caves des Papes, Oratorio and
Notre Dame de Cousignac
ranges include wines from the northern Rhône (e.g. Crozes-Hermitage) as
well as other vineyards in
the south (e.g. Gigondas, Vivarais). The
company exports about two-thirds of their wines with both
the UK (Mistral Wines is their main distributor with a good presence in
restaurants too) and USA (Canon Wines, San Francisco) being important
markets for them, so it should be easy enough to track down a bottle or
two.
Ogier is also a major sponsor of Les Chorégies, the annual series of
serious opera held during the Avignon festival at the spectacular Roman
amphitheatre in Orange; hence the special cuvée they make for it from Clos de l'Oratoire
(see below). They've also given their premises and cellars in Châteauneuf
itself a major overhaul incorporating an impressive wine tourism
complex, which is even open until 6.30pm on Saturdays, which is pretty
radical in France! There's a cute little garden where you'll find four
of the main vine varieties planted in four different plots/types of soil. The
omnipresent, Hollywood-studio-style castle turrets look ever-so-slightly
tacky but distinctive for sure, reminding you where you are after all!
Inside the chapel-like tasting room & shop, there are samples of
different soils/stones on display alongside a wine from each of these
sites, which you can taste informally or during one of the tutored
tastings they organise.
Their new barrel cellar adjoining the shop and old cellar is now split
into cask-size capacity. Hence the 300 litre barrels you run into first
(mix of French, American and Russian oak, by the way, for those
interested in techno-geeky facts) used for "our new
international Côtes du Rhône wines," as head winemaker
Didier Couturie
explained, then the 600 litre casks next door for "top of the range
wines," which have a longer life span here. And yet another doorway
takes you through to the huge old tuns "used constantly for storing and
blending." There's actually a well embedded innocently in the winery
floor filled from a natural spring that runs underground here, which
is handy as "there's not a lot of water in Châteauneuf-du-Pape and it
also helps increase humidity levels in the cellar," I was informed,
which improves the storage and ageing environment (i.e. not too dry).
Finally, a couple of restaurants worth mentioning gleaned from this trip
in July 2009: firstly, Le Verger des Papes perched up the hill from the
village next to the remains of the "Château des Pape" (obviously
not looking so "new" nowadays, ho ho), where we had a very pleasant
lunch out on the patio under the shade of olive trees (reasonable menus
for €19 and €29:
www.vergerdespapes.com, 04 90 83 50 40). And the
swanky famous (and rather expensive: about €100 for dinner) hotel &
restaurant La Mirande in central Avignon (www.la-mirande.fr,
04 90 14 20 20), which also has a cookery school called Le Marmiton held
in a spacious, pots-and-pans-filled, slightly underground kitchen. In
both senses of the word: we had a nose around and came across a lively
crowd, who'd cooked their own dinner including Jean-Paul Gaultier
merrily noshing away and Paul Belmondo (son of...). Anyway, over
to those wines:
2008 Clos de l'Oratoire white Châteauneuf-du-Pape (Grenache
blanc, Clairette,
Roussanne & Bourboulenc
13.5%) - oily "mineral" tones with floral, spicy and honeyed fruit; nice
weight with juicy texture and a touch of yeast-lees bite, surprisingly
fresh and gummy with juicy pear notes too then full and rounded finish.
Gets more interesting after being open for a bit with distinctive aniseed
flavours as well, well-handled blend and stylish. Winemaking: all varieties
fermented in stainless steel and left for three months on the lees except
the Roussanne, which was barrel-fermented (300 litre size) and stirred for
three months too. 87-89
2006
Clos de l'Oratoire red Châteauneuf-du-Pape (Grenache,
Syrah,
Cinsault,
Mourvèdre
&
Counoise
14.5%)
- delicious Grenache nose with liquorice, very ripe dark cherries and
cinnamon spices; quite firm at first but not too, pretty powerful
underpinned by attractive concentrated "sweet" fruit, rich aromatic
finish vs a bitter twist adding a little bite. Gets softer and quite
approachable now with a little air vs underlying structure and elegance
too. 89+
2007
Clos Oratoire red - much more closed up and less fruity to start
with (although it was over-chilled), spicy with more obvious alcohol and
tight framework; opened up (and warmed up) over lunch revealing lovely
dark cherry and liquorice fruit and lush lively mouthfeel, nice
concentrated chunky style showing solid dry texture, closes up on the
big finish. Promising although again actually quite attractive now after
some aeration. 90+
2005
Clos Oratoire red - smokier with more tobacco, leather and savoury
notes vs rich dried cherry and liquorice; lush vs spicy with nice
balanced grip, again powerful but it holds it well thanks to its
underlying concentrated "sweet & savoury" fruit. Very enjoyable now but
it has a longer life ahead of it (5+ years). 92+
2007 Les Chorégies CNdP (2/3
Grenache
+ Syrah)
- a tad closed up and
reductive at first, turning creamier with liquorice vs
cassis notes; vibrant and punchy with quite tight tannins adding firm
texture vs "sweet" peppery and meaty undertones. A touch awkward at the moment but should be good in 2 to 3 years time.
88+
2005 Les Chorégies CNdP (mostly
Grenache + Syrah
&
Mourvèdre)
- "sweeter" with more tobacco and savoury notes and spicy earthy edges; lush
and concentrated vs firm palate, good balance though with fairly thick
tannins and big mouthfeel supported by lovely fruit.
90+
More info @
www.ogier.fr.
Rhone links: touring
Crozes-Hermitage
country.
 Domaine du Grand Cros
-
Côtes de
Provence
Difficult to resist an email worded like this: "Sturdy
young British winemaker, Julian Faulkner, is not afraid to show his feminine
side with his 2006 rosé release. In fact this year he is pinker than ever with 6
different rosés on offer. You might think his feminine side (or his big ego) got
the better of him, but he wants to take you on a journey of exploration of
different styles and tastes for this hot and growing wine colour..." Julian's
estate can be found in Carnoules located in the Var 'département' (that's the
curved, sticking out bit between Marseille and the French Riviera), which is Côtes de Provence country wine-wise. Check out their site for more info:
www.grandcros.fr (which even allows you
to choose a Flash - which I find very irritating - or non-Flash experience).
When I examined the samples they sent more
closely (2 of each one), there was something odd about the shades of rosé colour. So I asked the
question: "Is it my eyesight or are the two different bottles of Jules and L'Esprit a slightly different shade of pink (one of each appears a little
deeper)? But I can't see any difference on the labels - an alternative approach
perhaps for those who prefer lighter or richer coloured rosé?!" And their reply
was: "That’s
exactly it! There’s more Syrah & Grenache, less Cinsault in the deeper colored
rosé, whereas there’s more Cinsault and Grenache and less Syrah in the paler
rosé. We distinguish them by the Lot Number, which you can spot on the neck
of the bottle: LF for the paler and LM for the richer. We reckon the lighter is
more aperitif and the other one more food rosé. Locally our clients tend to
prefer a lighter rosé." So now you know: commendably quirky if not a tad
confusing winemaking
ideas... Tasted March/April 07.
La Maîtresse Brut,
sparkling
rosé (traditional method 12%) - attractively red-fruity
with light almond undertones, appley plus a touch of biscuit; refreshing off-dry
finish. 87+
2006 Jules,
Côtes de Provence
rosé (paler,
Syrah
Grenache
Carignan
Cinsault
13%) - zingy rose petal and redcurrant, light almond and cream v juicy fruit, tight crisp finish.
85-87
2006 Jules,
Côtes de Provence
rosé (deeper) - very similar, can you tell the difference apart from
the colour?
Perhaps slightly fruitier and richer with fuller texture; otherwise dry, tight
and zingy. 85-87
2006 L'Esprit de Provence
rosé
(paler,
Cinsault
Grenache
Syrah
13%) - juicy yet quite weighty and round v zesty tight finish; fuller, less
'fruity' & oily rose petal palate, seems a tiny tad less dry perhaps?
87
2006 L'Esprit de Provence
rosé
(deeper) - zippier with redcurrant and raspberry fruit, oily and weighty v fresh
and crisp; more cherry fruit and light tannin too, nice length and mineral
texture. 87-89
2005 Nectar
rosé (Mourvèdre
Carignan
Syrah
13%) - a bit strange,
very deep colour; lightly oaky backdrop v rich fruit, dry and crisp v toasty
notes; not for everyone, better with food e.g. a spicy fish dish.
87
Domaine
du Grand Cros
-
update June 2008
Julian
Faulkner recently sent me a selection of new-release 2007 rosés
- three differently named cuvées this time so I don't know if he's
abandoned the 'variety of shades' winemaking idea (see above for
explanation & background on the estate) - along with three of their red
wines to try too. So without further ado, here are my notes and ratings
for what it's worth. And why not go there and check them out yourselves
next time you're cruising around Var country and along the coast?
I really must do another
Provence rosé tour sometime, on the way
to next year's Cannes film festival perhaps if I get nominated for the
Palme d'Or... Jules and Grand Cros are distributed in the UK by importer
& wholesaler Noel Young wines, so I've included retail prices below in
£Sterling. Certain lines are stocked by well-known stores e.g.
Selfridges do the Esprit rosé. Contact Julian via the website
www.grandcros.fr
for US distributors.
2007 Jules Côtes de Provence
rosé (Grenache
Cinsault
Carignan
12.5%) - attractive
pale salmon colour with floral aromatic white peach, redcurrant and
gooseberry notes; zesty, very intense palate with crisp fresh bite;
quite long, dry and stylish. £6.99 87
2007 Nectar Côtes de Provence rosé (Syrah Grenache
13%) -
similarly zesty aromatic intensity but more red-fruity,
raspberry/strawberry-ish and weightier too (and not just because the
alcohol's a little higher); quite rich and round-textured v fresh
acidity and light bitter bite of tannins, definitely a reasonably 'wow'
foodie rosé (e.g. quite good with something as strong as Roquefort &
aioli pasta). Wasn't the Nectar a bit oaky before? Perhaps it's seen a
barrel to give it that rounded mouth-feel although if so it's subtle.
Having said all that, the second day open it had lost the edge off some
of its excitement. £8.50 87-89
2007 L'Esprit de Provence rosé (Syrah Grenache
Cinsault
13%) -
similar to the other two but more of the gooseberry & redcurrant
intensity, with rose petal, violet and crunchy red fruits; very crisp
dry bite yet floral and oily textured, quite powerful long and zesty.
£7.99 89
2006 Jules Côtes de Provence red (Grenache
Mourvèdre
Carignan
Syrah
14.5%) - a touch stalky
and
reductive (?) when
first opened, although that went after a day or two; moves on to a
creamier cassis palate with light liquorice notes; rather dry, firm and
fresh on first tasting finishing a little bitter, although it has weight
and some roundness too; softened up with airing and is reasonably
elegant despite that quite high alcohol. Not sure, it's kind of fighting
itself. £7.29 83-85
2004
L'Esprit de Provence red (Syrah
Carignan
14%) - pity, this
bottle was slightly dusty/corky/musty (some of the other wines had
plastic corks but not this one), as underneath there's some nice black
cherry, cassis and liquorice fruit; smoky and quite lush v firm and
fresh structure, showing good balance of fruit, power and elegance
despite that lightly dusty finish. Have to try it again. £8.29
89+?
2004 Jules Réserve red Côtes de Provence (mostly
Cabernet Sauvignon, 12 months in French
oak, 14.5%) - very attractive smoky cassis fruit with cedary, herby,
black cherry and liquorice edges; big chunky solid palate showing good
balance of fair alcohol, rich depth of fruit, grippy tannins and
bitter/sweet twist; quite austere finish when first opened needing food
and a couple more years to soften. £10.75 90-92
Provence links:
Time Out guide 2009 -
Bandol galore
-
Massif des Maures
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Quick A to Z
Chapoutier
Clusel-Roch
La
Fourmente
Grand Cros
Joncuas
La Nerthe
Ogier
Winery snaps 1
Burgundy
Winery snaps 2
Southwest France
Winery snaps 3
South Africa
Lebanon & Austria
Winery snaps 4
Spain
Winery snaps 5
S &
N America
Winery
snaps 6
Oz
& New Zealand
Winery snaps 8
Sicily
Winery snaps 9
Portugal
Roussillon
snapshots:
(4 pages)
Languedoc
snapshots:
(6 pages)
Wines of the
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