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2018 Saint-Joseph Rouge
Jean-Claude Marsanne
Pour yourself a little glass of history with this one, a splash of the original “Vin de Mauves,” the centuries-old and nearly forgotten name given to the famed wines of the small slope above the village. Several vineyards on this hillside, including the Saint-Joseph parcel (which provided the name for this appellation that now covers a whopping twenty-six villages near and far), have been farmed by the Marsanne family for generations. The violets, tapenade, and juicy black fruit in your glass is much unchanged from how it’s always been (and should be). The vines are still worked by hand, the wines still fermented with indigenous yeasts, the aging still done two years in old oak barrels before release. A delightfully old-fashioned rouge from the cradle of Saint-Joseph.
—Chris Santini
Wine Type: | red |
Vintage: | 2018 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Syrah |
Appellation: | Saint-Joseph |
Country: | France |
Region: | Northern Rhône |
Producer: | Domaine Jean-Claude Marsanne |
Winemaker: | Jean-Claude Marsanne |
Vineyard: | Planted in 1940-45, 1950-1960, 1995-98, 6.5 ha |
Soil: | Granite |
Aging: | Fermented in stainless steel tanks. Aged for 12-15 months in 600L demi-muids (70-80%) and 228L barrels (20-30%) |
Farming: | Lutte Raisonnée |
Alcohol: | 14.5% |
More from this Producer or Region

2023 Saint-Joseph Rouge
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From high-altitude slopes above the Rhône river, this Syrah exhibits remarkable purity and grace.

2023 Saint-Joseph Blanc “Clef de Sol”
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This thoroughbred wine is sculpted for the cellar but still provides a lot of immediate gratification.

2022 Saint-Joseph “Les Grisières”
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Yearning for northern Rhône magic? Here you go. Pull a cork or more and see what I mean.

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The kind of Saint-Jo to dig into right away: smoky, layered, lush, and laced with violet, bay leaf, and black olive.

2020 Côte-Rôtie “Fongeant”
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From the border of the Côte Blonde and Côte Brune, and renowned for sharing the best of both: structure from the Brune, with silky, floral elegance provided by the Blonde.

2023 Crozes-Hermitage Rouge
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This small parcel has a fruit-forward, approachable style, yet with intense spice and licorice in there as well, perhaps from the deep-rooted old Syrah vines.

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Like eating lemon curd at a party that Renoir might have painted—think something like Dance at Le Moulin de la Galette.

2023 Collines Rhodaniennes Viognier “Les Ruisseaux”
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Amid the lush fruit runs a delicate current of minerality that lingers on the tongue, as if the wine cascaded down a granite slope on its way into your glass.

2023 Ardèche Syrah “Syrah Mauve”
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Young vines in Mauves, short maceration, stainless-steel aged... but definitely no simple Syrah!

About The Producer
Domaine Jean-Claude Marsanne
The Marsanne family, as their name attests, has a long and deep-rooted history in the northern Rhône, in particular around Mauves, the birthplace of the Saint-Joseph appellation. In 1920, current owner Jean-Claude’s grandfather, Jean-Pierre, became the first in the family to focus solely on vineyards—no easy task given the impossibly steep slopes of Mauves, where everything must be worked by hand and pickaxe. Jean-Pierre started with just a few small parcels, selling off his crop to prestigious négociants, and was quickly renowned throughout the region for the exceptional quality of his grapes. His untimely passing in 1950 forced his son, Jean, to quit school at age 16 to take over the domaine. He continued his father’s work in earnest, his vineyards often being recognized amongst the village’s best, not just for their exposition and soil, but also for the attention to detail young Jean paid to each vine. The grape sales financed some small land purchases in and around Mauves, and the domaine slowly grew to 3 hectares. In 1970, Jean made the leap to begin making and bottling the wines himself. Over time, a small, but loyal following developed, especially among France’s fine dining establishments, which valued the finesse and elegance of Marsanne’s cuvées. The domaine remained largely unknown on the international scene, overlooked by many journalists and clients who sought out bolder, more extracted styles.
Since taking over from Jean in 1991, Jean-Claude has continued to add select new parcels, growing the domaine to 9.6 hectares. While still mostly focused on Syrah from the hallowed terroir of Mauves, he now farms a few small plots of Marsanne for his Saint-Joseph blanc, as well as some Viognier and Syrah in the Ardèche hills west of the village. He also inherited a superb plot of Crozes-Hermitage that once belonged to his grandmother.
Kermit came across Jean Marsanne during his early adventures in France in the 1970s, and was struck by the wines’ aromatic complexity and Jean’s meticulous care for the vineyards. He even managed to import a few bottles in those early days. Kermit and the Marsannes lost touch and life went on, until decades later when Kermit spotted a familiar label while dining out in Paris. The bottle was ordered, uncorked, and an old collaboration was renewed.
Jean-Claude holds tightly to the traditions of his family. These include farming the steepest parcels by hand, as was done by his grandfather; using indigenous yeasts for slow, natural fermentations, like his father taught him; and aging his wines extensively on fine lees, releasing each cuvée at its most expressive moment. The reunion with Marsanne is one of great pride on both sides.
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2022 Côte-Rôtie
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Kermit once said...

Kermit once said...
I want you to realize once and for all: Even the winemaker does not know what aging is going to do to a new vintage; Robert Parker does not know; I do not know. We all make educated (hopefully) guesses about what the future will bring, but guesses they are. And one of the pleasures of a wine cellar is the opportunity it provides for you to witness the evolution of your various selections. Living wines have ups and downs just as people do, periods of glory and dog days, too. If wine did not remind me of real life, I would not care about it so much.
Inspiring Thirst, page 171