Incursion en langue anglaise.
Serais-je pardonné par les BDEiens ?
Dans cet espoir,
Alex R.
I visited Côte Rôtie for the first time in decades this past weekend and had a wonderful time.
The occasion was the Marché aux Vins in Ampuis, which I first heard about on Internet wine forums and finally decided to visit:
http://www.marche-aux-vins-ampuis-cote- ... l#principeI arrived the day before in Lyon. After a long drive (6 hours), I thought I would reward myself with a glass of Beaujolais. Well, I had to go to 5 cafés before I could find one that would serve me a glass! The waiter in one of these, the up-market Café des Négociants, sniffed and told me that I’d do better with a Côtes du Rhône. Jeez, if the people of Lyon don’t even support their own wine…
For information, the glass I finally found was quite enjoyable.
Dinner was with a friend at Le Musée
http://www.linternaute.com/restaurant/r ... usee.shtml, a real bouchon Lyonnais with plenty of atmosphere, solid cuisine, and good Beaujolais (we had their Brouilly and Morgon).
Ampuis, located less than 30 km. from Lyon, is in the Rhône department – same as Beaujolais. It can be a little confusing because I stayed next to a town called Loire-sur-Rhône (!), and Château Grillet is actually in the Loire department, which, when you think about it, is kind of strange for a Rhône Valley wine…
Côte Rôtie is 250 hectares of terraced vines with stakes, on a steep, lumpy hill overlooking the town. Wine has been made here for over two millennia. Syrah is king, although producers add a little Viognier (up to 15% when I asked around).
I learned that “Côte Brune†and “Côte Blonde†are, in fact, misnomers, and are used primarily to simplify things for consumers. There are indeed two plots with those names, divided by a stream called the Reynard. However, at one point in time, plots north of the stream began to be called Côte Brune and ones south Côte Blonde, even if this does not correspond to the reality of the appellation’s 17 different terroirs.
Condrieu now has more vines than Côte Rôtie. About half of producers at the Marché aux Vins were also pouring their Condrieu. I tasted many wines, but I unfortunately just do not like the Viognier grape. I nevertheless did my best to dissociate my personal preference from the wine’s intrinsic quality. Thus, I gave a high score (16/20), for instance, to Guigal’s La Doriane whereas I would never buy a bottle. Several producers were showing vins de paille and vendanges tardives wines. I quite enjoyed Pierre Gaillard’s 2009 late harvest, but this was 34 euros for a tiny bottle. Although I appreciated the other white wines at the tasting (St. Joseph, Hermitage, etc.) better, please forgive me, white Rhône wines just don’t ring my chimes.
The 83rd Marché aux Vins was held in the Ampuis gymnasium and most local producers were there (although not all were from Côte Rôtie and Condrieu, and included people who made – sometimes exclusively – Cornas, St. Joseph, Crozes Hermitage and Hermitage). It cost 8 euros to get in, and they gave you a souvenir glass. This highly-reputed event attracts many people. So many, in fact, that, you can hardly move along the aisles at the height of the weekend, much less taste and spit. Therefore, I would advise anyone who is thinking of attending to arrive on the first day (starting on Friday afternoon at 4 pm) and to be there when the place opens on Saturday and/or Sunday. The crush of people in the afternoon is oppressive. Monday is set aside for professionals, although I was told that that too is crowded…
Prices: Côte Rôtie retail prices start at 25 euros. Indeed, you can find good wine at that price (such as Didier Gérin’s 2009) and seriously good wine in the 30 to 35 euro range. As you can easily imagine, Guigal were not pouring their LaLa’s for the general public! However, they were serving 2007 Château d’Ampuis, whose quality tempted me to buy two bottles at 60 euros each. This was one of the most expensive wines I saw anywhere at the Marché.
I came away with a very good impression of the general quality of Côte Rôtie, especially in the 2009 vintage, which was in bottle and available at about half of the stands. At the risk of raising a few hackles, I cannot help but compare the wines from this appellation to Châteauneuf-du-Pape, and finding the former much more elegant and digestible. Many of the wines had a lovely bouquet and a tangy finish, a sort of acid lift at the end that makes them ideal (dare I say it?) food wines. I also came away with the impression (confirmed by several producers) that these are wines for mid-term ageing, which makes them all the more attractive. Ten years is fine according to the people I spoke to.
The négociant wines were uneven. Guigal’s basic wines were ho-hum, as were Chapoutier’s and Vidal Fleury’s (didn’t get to taste at Delas). However, we all know that Guigal’s estate wines can be superb, and Vidal Fleury’s single estate La Chatillonne was very fine indeed.
I spent two full half-days tasting, and I think it would be both hard work and pretty boring to transcribe all my notes... So, I’ll just share a few impressions instead.
Gilles Barge: The owner is mayor of Ampuis. I liked his 2008 Côte Brune, but was less enamored of this other wines.
Billon: Their 06 Les Elotins was already tired and their 06 La Brocarde (at 39 euros…) was better, but not by much.
Bracoud: Middle-of-the-road producer. Aromatic 2007, but a bit astringent on the aftertaste.
Bonnefond(s): There are two producers of this name. G. Bonnefond makes lackluster wines, but P & C Bonnefond made wine that I very much enjoyed. The 2008 Côte Rosier is lovely and very representative of its appellation. The Colline de Couzo (regular cuvée) is excellent, and will also be good to drink relatively young. A fellow taster found too much oak, but not me.
Bonsérine: They do a number of cuvées. The entry level ones are nothing to write home about, but the best (and fairly expensive) are worthwhile. I preferred 07 La Viallière to the overoaked 07 La Garde, despite the former’s somewhat hot finish.
Burgaud: One of the best at the tasting with a fine bouquet reminiscent of violets.
Chambeyron-Manin: At first, I was very taken with their 2007, but when I re-tasted it, the notes of oxidation seemed more bothersome
Clusel Roch: These people are into organic viticulture. I quite liked their 2007 Côte Rôtie and preferred it to their single vineyard 2008 Les Grandes Places that was weak on the middle palate and dry on the finish.
Coursodon: This is “the†name in St. Joseph, but I only tried their white wine, which was good but not memorable. Should have gone back and tasted their reds, but there’s only so much you can do
.
Cuilleron: Their range was definitely above average, but I found nothing really special. On the other hand, I had a Saint-Joseph of theirs in a restaurant that was on a par with most of the Côte Rôties I tasted.
Daubrie: Their 07 Côte Rôtie didn’t stand out at all.
Deboisseyt-Chol: One the expensive side (34€). The 2008 a good bouquet, but is spoiled by greenness.
Duclaux: Disappointed with their 07 La Germine, but more impressed with the same wine from the 2008 vintage, which nevertheless does not need long ageing.
Faurie: The 2009 was better on the sniff than in the mouth. Dry finish.
Faury: Their 2009 is a real crowd-pleaser, very buxom and upfront. Sensual. Contains up to 15% Viognier.
Fayolle: Their 09 Hermitage is lovely. I bought 3 bottles at 32 euros each.
André François: Not on par with the best.
Gallet: below average.
Gangloff: Their 08 La Barbarine was nice, but not worth 35 euros.
Garon: The range was a bit uneven, and oak may play too predominant a role. The 09 La Sybarine was a little disappointing, Les Triottes was better, despite the vintage (08), and Les Rochins was quite fine, although expensive (53 €).
Gérard: simple, just OK.
Didier Gérin: Didier looks kind of like an overgrown hippie. He makes very good, affordable wine.
J.M. Gérin: Well-known producer. I quite liked the 08 St. Joseph and the 08 Côte Rôtie which showed good potential. I have a bottle of their Grandes Places in my cellar, but this was not on show.
Jamet: This is a name I have often heard in the past. Their 2009 was rich and concentrated with almost liqueur-like aromas. Strong, and a little hot on the aftertaste. Needs to come together.
I had their 2005 in a nearby restaurant and thought it superb, and at 5 years this was not infanticide, as it would be for a Bordeaux or Burgundy.
Jasmin: another famous name, but I was moderately disappointed with their 2008 (OK, not such a good year as 2009)
Lafoy: Young, go-ahead winemaker. Their 2009 vieilles vignes was very good, their 2006 Les Moutonnes less so.
Levet: Their wines were reliable, especially the 07 La Péroline, but they are not for the long haul.
Lézin-Lagnier: one of the least expensive. Good if consumed young.
Michelas: A good, very virile and tannic 2009 Cornas. Their Terres d’Arce from selected vineyards in the same appellation was even better. Their St. Joseph, on the other hand, was less good.
Mouton: run-of-the-mill in the context.
Ch. de Montlys: This was one of my favorite estates and they even have a genuine château! Really delicious wine to drink in the medium term. Their prestige cuvee, Fleur de Montlys, is even better, but it costs twice as much and I’m not sure it’s worth it.
Niero: While the regular 2009 cuvée is best bypassed, the 2007 Vires de Serin was very fine and subtle (40 euros).
Ogier: This domaine is not to be confused with the much larger Ogier in Châteauneuf-du-Pape. It was the only estate I actually visited. They make a range of Vins de Pays called “La Rosine†sold at very high prices. Are they worth it? As good as they are, I’m not convinced… The 2008 Côte Rôtie, on the other hand, was very good indeed and the only wine I tasted all weekend that evoked the descriptor “bacon fat†that one often reads on American forums.
Parpette: Very good 09 at a very competitive price (23 €).
Pichon: The 2009 seemed to have a problem with barrel ageing. The 2008 Comtesse Côte Blanche was much better, but should be drunk in the next 2-3 years.
Domaine de Rosiers (Louis Drevon): Whereas the 2008 was disappointing the 2009 was delicious. A little on the light side but full of classy fruit and floral aromas. I bought 3 bottles at 25 euros apiece.
D. & R. Vernay: If their 2007 is anything to go by, best avoided.
Voge: Wasn’t impressed with their 2008 Cornas, but the 2007 Vieilles Vignes was much better. My notes say “pour amateurs de sensations fortesâ€. A wine with cojones.
Best regards,
Alex R.