Northern Rhône
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Hermitage
© Jimmy Hayes
Clémence Marsanne
© Jimmy Hayes
Cellar in Cornas
© Gail Skoff
Côte-Rôtie
© Gail Skoff
The Northern Rhône
© Gail Skoff
“Nowadays, when heading north from Provence, I hear Paul Tardieu’s passionate exclamation, ‘Once you know Provence, you don’t ever want to leave it. No one ever goes back north, no one!’ If over the years I have grown attached to Provence, in terms of wine itself my heart belongs to the great reds of the northern Rhône. The best combine a reminder of the sunny Mediterranean with the more self-conscious, intellectual appeal of the great Burgundies farther north, which is not bad combination. And these prized wines of northern Rhône are some of France’s rarest.” –Kermit Lynch, Adventures on the Wine Route
Hermitage
© Jimmy Hayes
Clémence Marsanne
© Jimmy Hayes
Cellar in Cornas
© Gail Skoff
Côte-Rôtie
© Gail Skoff
The Northern Rhône
© Gail Skoff
“Nowadays, when heading north from Provence, I hear Paul Tardieu’s passionate exclamation, ‘Once you know Provence, you don’t ever want to leave it. No one ever goes back north, no one!’ If over the years I have grown attached to Provence, in terms of wine itself my heart belongs to the great reds of the northern Rhône. The best combine a reminder of the sunny Mediterranean with the more self-conscious, intellectual appeal of the great Burgundies farther north, which is not bad combination. And these prized wines of northern Rhône are some of France’s rarest.” –Kermit Lynch, Adventures on the Wine Route
For today’s offer, we turn the page from the Loire and dive into another region defined by its great river. The Rhône, which tethers Lake Geneva to the Mediterranean Sea, flows west from the lake until it reaches Lyon, when it takes a turn south and keeps going until it empties out just past Arles. The Rhône Valley—for wine, defined as the stretch of the river between Lyon and Avignon—is divided into two very different wine regions, north and south.
Today, we’ll be focusing on the northern Rhône, which is defined by a cooler, more continental climate than in the south, features mostly granitic soils, and is home to some of the most dramatic hillside vineyards in the world. The great wines of the northern Rhône are often made with a single grape variety: Syrah for reds and Marsanne, Roussanne, or Viognier for whites. Across the region’s appellations, what makes northern Rhône Syrah so special in general is its terroir transparency as well as the grape’s beguiling aromas of dark fruit accompanied by savory hints of black olive and smoke. Its luscious, perfumed whites are a rare treat to be savored at each opportunity. –Tom Wolf
Wines In The Collection
Barruol / Lynch France | Northern Rhône
Delicate and perfumed, it speaks softly, yet it has so much to say: lilies, bacon fat, spices... it could only be Côte Rôtie.
Domaine Jolivet France | Northern Rhône
Golden, luscious aroma and flavor, a delicious nectar infused with honeysuckle that invites you in at first sniff for a leisurely dip.
Barruol / Lynch France | Northern Rhône
From the classic aromas of graphite, black fruit, and roasted spice, to the total finesse of its tannins, this is Côte-Rôtie at its best.
Lionel Faury France | Northern Rhône
The roots of these vines run deep, and deep is what you get in the glass, too—a rich mix of black olive, fennel, and raspberry.
Barruol / Lynch France | Northern Rhône
From vines that are more than eighty years old comes this Marsanne with magnificent floral, pit fruit, and bitter notes.
Domaine Jean-Claude Marsanne France | Northern Rhône
The violets, tapenade, and juicy black fruit in your glass is much unchanged from how it’s always been (and should be).
Barruol / Lynch France | Northern Rhône
A thick perfume of dry-aged meat, smoke, and violets preface a wine that is powerful, but in perfect proportion.
Domaine Jolivet France | Northern Rhône
It is a real-deal northern Rhône roasted-slope Syrah that walks the tightrope perfectly between creamy fruit, meaty tannins, and fresh spine.
Jean-Claude Marsanne France | Northern Rhône
Like eating lemon curd at a party that Renoir might have painted—think something like Dance at Le Moulin de la Galette.
Barruol / Lynch France | Northern Rhône
Layered and textural, this tightly bound opus will open and unfurl itself with time, be it an hour in a decanter or decades in the cellar.
France | Northern Rhône
Delicate and perfumed, it speaks softly, yet it has so much to say: lilies, bacon fat, spices... it could only be Côte Rôtie.
France | Northern Rhône
Golden, luscious aroma and flavor, a delicious nectar infused with honeysuckle that invites you in at first sniff for a leisurely dip.
France | Northern Rhône
From the classic aromas of graphite, black fruit, and roasted spice, to the total finesse of its tannins, this is Côte-Rôtie at its best.
France | Northern Rhône
The roots of these vines run deep, and deep is what you get in the glass, too—a rich mix of black olive, fennel, and raspberry.
France | Northern Rhône
From vines that are more than eighty years old comes this Marsanne with magnificent floral, pit fruit, and bitter notes.
France | Northern Rhône
The violets, tapenade, and juicy black fruit in your glass is much unchanged from how it’s always been (and should be).
France | Northern Rhône
A thick perfume of dry-aged meat, smoke, and violets preface a wine that is powerful, but in perfect proportion.
France | Northern Rhône
It is a real-deal northern Rhône roasted-slope Syrah that walks the tightrope perfectly between creamy fruit, meaty tannins, and fresh spine.
France | Northern Rhône
Like eating lemon curd at a party that Renoir might have painted—think something like Dance at Le Moulin de la Galette.
France | Northern Rhône
Layered and textural, this tightly bound opus will open and unfurl itself with time, be it an hour in a decanter or decades in the cellar.
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