2022 ChevernyDomaine du Salvard
France | Loire
$22
Producers
What I love most about Faury’s old-vine Saint Joe are the lively, peppery aromatics offered right at the first pour. 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. This cuvée is a longtime personal favorite, solid and dependable year in and year out, from the domaine’s oldest vines, situated in the famed “Le Blanchard” parcel on the northern tip of the Saint Joseph appellation.
—Chris Santini
Wine Type: | red |
Vintage: | 2019 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Syrah |
Appellation: | Saint-Joseph |
Country: | France |
Region: | Northern Rhône |
Producer: | Lionel Faury |
Winemaker: | Lionel Faury |
Vineyard: | Planted between 1937 and 1976, .9 ha |
Soil: | Granite |
Aging: | Aged for 15 months in oak demi-muids (600-L) and barrels (220-L) |
Farming: | Lutte Raisonnée |
Alcohol: | 14% |
Lionel Faury France | Northern Rhône | Saint-Joseph
Lionel Faury France | Northern Rhône | Saint-Joseph
Lionel Faury France | Northern Rhône | Collines Rhodaniennes
Lionel Faury France | Northern Rhône | Côte Rôtie
Lionel Faury France | Northern Rhône | Collines Rhodaniennes
Lionel Faury France | Northern Rhône | Saint Joseph
Along the steep, narrow valley that traces the northern Rhône, the appellations of Côte-Rôtie, Condrieu and Saint-Joseph take their place among the great wines of France, and Domaine Faury is one of the region’s most artisanal producers. When Philippe Faury took over the domaine in 1979, the family was selling wine, peaches and cherries, and the bulk of their clientele was local. Over the years, Philippe increased their holdings to over 11 hectares and began to sell internationally. He shared his savoir faire with his son, Lionel. Since 2006, Lionel has taken over the reins, though father and son still work side by side. Every method they use encourages the grape towards greatness with the ultimate respect for its fragility.
On the wines of the northern Rhône, Kermit wrote in Adventures on the Wine Route, “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 a bad combination.” Like the wines of Provence, Burgundy, and Beaujolais, Kermit was introduced to this region by Richard Olney, an American ex-pat and friend of Alice Waters.
Though technically part of the same region as the southern Rhône and connected by the Rhône River, much differentiates the north from the south. The climate is continental and in general cooler than that Mediterranean climate of the south. The appellations are significantly smaller: Cornas has less than 300 acres planted to vine and Hermitage around 345. The area planted is minute when compared to Gigondas (3,000+ acres) and Châteauneuf-du-Pape (nearly 8,000 acres). Many of the great wines come from steep hillside vines—terraced during Roman times. It was clear to the Romans that great wine could be made here and DNA evidence now shows that Syrah is in fact indigenous to the Rhône.
The terroir is predominantly granite and lastly, blends of the wines are mostly single grape varieties. Only four grape varieties are permitted in AOC blends: Syrah, Viogner, Marsanne, and Roussanne (as compared to the 19 permitted varieties allowed in Châteauneuf). The red wines are nearly all Syrah and Condrieu and Château Grillet must be 100% Viogner. The whites of Hermitage, Saint Joseph, Saint Péray, and Crozes-Hermitages may only be blends of Marsanne and Roussanne.
Barruol Lynch France | Northern Rhône | Côte Rôtie
André Perret France | Northern Rhône | Condrieu
Lionel Faury France | Northern Rhône | Collines Rhodaniennes
Barruol / Lynch France | Northern Rhône | Hermitage
Barruol / Lynch France | Northern Rhône | Crozes Hermitage
Jean-Claude Marsanne France | Northern Rhône | Crozes-Hermitage
Jean-Claude Marsanne France | Northern Rhône | Saint-Joseph
Barruol / Lynch France | Northern Rhône | Hermitage
Lionel Faury France | Northern Rhône | Condrieu
Jean-Claude Marsanne France | Northern Rhône | Saint-Joseph
Barruol / Lynch France | Northern Rhône | Côte Rôtie
Jean-Claude Marsanne France | Northern Rhône | IGP Ardèche
For the wines that I buy I insist that the winemaker leave them whole, intact. I go into the cellars now and select specific barrels or cuvées, and I request that they be bottled without stripping them with filters or other devices. This means that many of our wines will arrive with a smudge of sediment and will throw a more important deposit as time goes by, It also means the wine will taste better.
Drinking distilled spirits, beer, coolers, wine and other alcoholic beverages may increase cancer risk, and, during pregnancy, can cause birth defects. For more information go to www.P65Warnings.ca.gov/alcohol
Many food and beverage cans have linings containing bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical known to cause harm to the female reproductive system. Jar lids and bottle caps may also contain BPA. You can be exposed to BPA when you consume foods or beverages packaged in these containers. For more information, go to www.P65Warnings.ca.gov/bpa