NYTimes: Asimov On Cote-Rotie

Nicely done article (as is usually the case) by EricAsimov:

NYTimes: Asimov On Cote-Rotie

where he sorta laments the passing of "old-style" and its replacement with big fruit/oak-slathered/high-scoring Cote-Roties (can we say LaLa here). But he does find hope w/ some producers who lie in the middle.
Tom

Thanks for sharing that Tom. That's a great article.

I've been fortunate enough to try some Gentaz-Dervieux (thanks to a very generous member of my CT tasting group who bought a few of these wines years ago). They're staggering; singular wines.

There aren't many wines like that being made now - I'm a huge fan of Levet though, who I find is making some of the most classical and fragrant wines in C-R. But these days am looking elsewhere (particularly Allemand's Cornas and Gonon's Saint Joseph) for that type of wine with the same sense of purity and soil-to-glass-transfer (to use a term from JLL).

Thanks for sharing that Tom. That's a great article.

I've been fortunate enough to try some Gentaz-Dervieux (thanks to a very generous member of my CT tasting group who bought a few of these wines years ago). They're staggering; singular wines.

There aren't many wines like that being made now - I'm a huge fan of Levet though, who I find is making some of the most classical and fragrant wines in C-R. But these days am looking elsewhere (particularly Allemand's Cornas and Gonon's Saint Joseph) for that type of wine with the same sense of purity and soil-to-glass-transfer (to use a term from JLL).

Yup, Salil. Haven't had a G-D in a number of yrs but I was always struck by their floral/violets perfume and their lovely elegance. Something you just don't often find in Syrah from other
areas. The WindGap and Arnot-Roberts are the only thing from Calif that approach them.
Tom

Thanks for sharing that Tom. That's a great article.

I've been fortunate enough to try some Gentaz-Dervieux (thanks to a very generous member of my CT tasting group who bought a few of these wines years ago). They're staggering; singular wines.

There aren't many wines like that being made now - I'm a huge fan of Levet though, who I find is making some of the most classical and fragrant wines in C-R. But these days am looking elsewhere (particularly Allemand's Cornas and Gonon's Saint Joseph) for that type of wine with the same sense of purity and soil-to-glass-transfer (to use a term from JLL).

Yup, Salil. Haven't had a G-D in a number of yrs but I was always struck by their floral/violets perfume and their lovely elegance. Something you just don't often find in Syrah from other
areas. The WindGap and Arnot-Roberts are the only thing from Calif that approach them.
Tom

Asimov certainly doesn't surprise when he cites Gentaz, Verset and Trollat, Kermit Lynch's N Rhone triumvirate (along, of course, with the superstars Chave and Clape). Alas, I've never had a G-D C-R, though Verset remains a reference point for Cornas. (Trollat was hit-or-miss for me, as the Brett was sometimes too much even for my Brett-insensitive palate). I would quibble with one point in his otherwise excellent essay, though: he claims that Viognier was added for perfume and lightness, but I have heard that the reason for the co-ferment with Syrah was to help fix the color and extraction from what otherwise could be a very lightly colored wine. No doubt, the aromatics of Viognier helped lift the nose of C-R, but the primary purpose I believe was to help the color and body of the wine.

Mark Lipton

[David M. Bueker]

On the subject of Wind Gap Syrahs, while I like them, I have found them to be rather burly and lacking elegance. The Griffin's Lair was the epitome of this, with very ripe fruit and notable soy elements.

I hope for age to do some magic, but I am cautious in my optimism.

I would quibble with one point in his otherwise excellent essay, though: he claims that Viognier was added for perfume and lightness, but I have heard that the reason for the co-ferment with Syrah was to help fix the color and extraction from what otherwise could be a very lightly colored wine. No doubt, the aromatics of Viognier helped lift the nose of C-R, but the primary purpose I believe was to help the color and body of the wine.
Mark Lipton

Agree there, Mark. Back in the old days (by crackey), the primary reason for adding Viognier to Syrah was to boost the alcohol.
Viognier being an early ripener, by the time the Syrah was approaching ripeness, the Viog would be very ripe (gads...imagine the
DollyParton Viogniers they could have been making!!), giving a boost in the final alcohol. At the time, they didn't know about
co-pigmentation, but probably noted that a little Viognier gave a darker wine.
The claim that adding Viog gives perfume/lightness/brightness/elegance to C-R...I'm a bit skeptical of. I've heard people proclaim (usually,
loudly and with great authority) that they can smell the 1% Viog in a C-R. I've never been able to do that...but than I have the palate
of a brontasaurus. I've blended (the winemaker has...I just tasted) in 5%,10%,15% Viog w/ Syrah from barrel. It may have made for a slightly
lighter wine....but danged if I could smell anything that I identified as Viog in the blend.
Tom

Eric then goes on to speculate why Americans don't buy more Syrah:
AsimovBlog

But I fear that their stylistic legacy — ultra-ripe syrah fruit and lots of new oak flavor, especially when made with grapes from less distinctive sites by less experienced winemakers — results in too many wines of little character. This, I suggest, is why American don’t buy a lot of syrah: Too many of the wines seem generic, a blend of fruit and oak that may be vaguely pleasant but could come from anywhere and be made of any grape.

That may very well be true at the low end (<$15/btl), but I don't see that at the mid-high end (>$20/btl). I think maybe I see that more in WashState Syrah than in Calif Syrah...least the ones I buy.
The "savory" element in Cote-Rotie is what really attracts me. I don't see that in too many from Calif, though.
Tom

hmmm no mention of jasmin - one of my go to guys for a long time. tasted and bought the 2001 on site and thought it classic. unfortunatly in the meantime, brett has raised a particularly ugly head and i'm going to have to donate mine to charity i fear. i hope the recently purchased '08 and '09 don't fair as poorly.

i've often said that a well made cote rotie in the style azimov refers to as feminine would be my dessert island wine.

The claim that adding Viog gives perfume/lightness/brightness/elegance to C-R...I'm a bit skeptical of. I've heard people proclaim (usually,
loudly and with great authority) that they can smell the 1% Viog in a C-R. I've never been able to do that...but than I have the palate
of a brontasaurus. I've blended (the winemaker has...I just tasted) in 5%,10%,15% Viog w/ Syrah from barrel. It may have made for a slightly
lighter wine....but danged if I could smell anything that I identified as Viog in the blend.

Is that brontasaurus* palate a hunting trophy, Tom? I agree about the Viognier character bit, though: I'm always skeptical when people claim to detect trace elements of things unless the trace element is very readily detected.

Mark Lipton

* We're both dating ourselves by using a deprecated term for the apatosaurus, y'know.