Clos de la Bonnette
A new (ish) find, having tasted at trade shows and fairs in France, we were then thrilled that Matt Walls went so far as to list the 'Legende Bonnetta' cuvée as his top Condrieu from the 2019 vintage - a strong field with some fairly serious contenders!
Husband and wife team Isabelle & Henri are fully certified organic, they had been farming fruit and vegetables in the region since the 1970s but since 2009 have focused solely on the vine. They make some very compelling wines from a tiny 5 hectare estate, split between Condrieu and two sites in Côte Rôtie. Tasting these in London turned us into wide-eyed children – the wines are truly magical and surpassed our already elevated expectations. The Côte Rôtie and Condrieu are gorgeous – so sleek and polished, with a nose that you just want to dive into.
Isabelle characterised 2023 as:
‘A difficult but beautiful vintage, warm & dry but the yield was good and the wines are very beautiful.’
2023 CONDRIEU Légende Bonnetta Clos de la Bonnette
2023 Legend de Bonnette Condrieu 13% 11 months in old oak barriques and demi muids. Bottled in July and just a little closed on the nose, showing notes of jasmine and white flowers. The palate is2023 Legend de Bonnette Condrieu 13% 11 months in old oak barriques and demi muids. Bottled in July and just a little closed on the nose, showing notes of jasmine and white flowers. The palate is bright, floral and peachy, white melon, good acidity to carry it too, another top wine from IsabelleL&S (Oct 2024)
In Bond
2023 VIOGNIER Archette IGP Collines Rhodaniennes Clos de la Bonnette
2023 VIOGNIER Archette Clos de la Bonnette - Bright, clear, light & floral onthe nose, the palate is super fresh, full of apricot stone fruit and summer flowers, a little pleasant bitterness pith on2023 VIOGNIER Archette Clos de la Bonnette - Bright, clear, light & floral onthe nose, the palate is super fresh, full of apricot stone fruit and summer flowers, a little pleasant bitterness pith on the finish, a nice lick of acidity pulls it all together.L&S (Oct 2024)
In Bond
Domaine Benjamin et David Duclaux
Over the past decade, the quietly unassuming Benjamin & David Duclaux have steadfastly raised the profile of the region with the quality of their wines. This is undoubtedly one of the top domaines in Côte-Rôtie and if you like elegant, bright Burgundian style Syrah then there is no better estate to seek out.
Founded in 1928 by Frédéric Caillet, the great-grandfather of brothers Benjamin and David and then developed by their father Edmond, the domaine consists of 5.8 hectares of vines above Tupin et Semons, in the southern end of the Côte-Rôtie appellation, where the bedrock is gneiss and granite.
Here the brothers are aiming to make the elegant style of wine which this rocky vineyard produces - and they certainly succeed. The Chana (Syrah with 7% Viognier) is a cuvée that is simply a 'gourmandise' , supple, aromatic, fresh, pure. The Germine (Syrah with 3% Viognier) and the Maison Rouge (100% Syrah) are more structured and, while they can be drunk young, they will give their best with some age. In 2018 a new cuvée was added, Côteaux de Tupin, 100% and whole bunch with barrel ferment, these are immense wines and need patience. The Domaine has also produced a small volume of Condrieu since 2014 from a rented vineyard that they tend to.
The wine-making is gentle, there is 20% whole-bunch in the Germine , but otherwise the grapes are de-stemmed. The Chana is aged in demi-muids, the others in smaller barrels - the Maison Rouge getting 40% new wood. All the cuvées, with the exception of Côteaux de Tupin , are ready to drink after 2-3 years but will age very nicely too. Production is limited to a total of around 2000 cases a year for the whole domaine.
Domaine Christelle Betton
Christelle is the third generation, following in the footsteps of her father and her grandfather who tended to their vineyards, selling to négociants for a time, but bringing the winemaking back to the domaine in 2003.
Christelle manages 15 acres of vines in Crozes-Hermitage and one-third acre of vines in Hermitage. Soils in the village of Roche de Glun are alluvial, with many “galets roulés” commonly found along the Rhône River valley (and most commonly in Châteauneuf-du-Pape). The area is also very dry, which is why the Betton family has for years ploughed the land by hand, to better train their vines’ roots to dig deep in the rocky soils. Also, vineyards are well-exposed to the cold northern “mistral” winds from the Alps, helping preserve freshness and acidity in the grapes.
Christelle uses only older French oak barrels (from four to eight years, and sourced from white Burgundy producers) to age her wines. In general, wines are aged in barrel for one year, and are bottled unfined and unfiltered.
On the 2023 vintage, Christelle reflected:
“It reminded me a lot of the ‘22, perhaps a bit of ’21 too, it was very hot, but there is lots of freshness in the wines, very fruit forward.”
Domaine Clusel-Roch
From the 1950s to 1980 René and Josephine Clusel grew fruit and vegetables as well as grapes in Côte-Rôtie. Their son, Gilbert, with his wife Brigitte Roch, started to focus solely on the vineyards, and expanded the domaine a little.
Guillaume, Brigitte and Gilbert's son, joined the domaine in 2009 and is now in charge. He added significantly to the vineyard area, but mostly with the addition of Gamay in the Coteaux du Lyonnais. While the property is around 13 hectares, they still have only five hectares in Côte-Rôtie and just half a hectare in Condrieu. The vines are planted on terraces along the Côte-Rôtie, in the classic local style with two wooden stakes tied above each vine to help protect against the region's occasionally howling winds.
They were the first domaine to fully embrace organic practices and have been certified since 2002. They are a shining example of what can be achieved by hard work in the vineyards and truly artisan winemaking; their wines express the very best of this unique terroir up in the northern sector of Côte-Rôtie.
Les Schistes is the very approachable young cuvée from a selection of all plots, whilst the remaining cuvées are all single lieu dits. Annual production of Côte-Rôtie here still hovers at about 1250 cases per year. These are beautifully made wines with a very pure expression of place from this great region.
Guillaume on the 2023 vintage:
“The 2023 vintage was a little rainy in spring but gave way to a very beautiful summer. This allowed us to make a very nice fruity, balanced and juicy wine. This vintage reminds me of the 2016 vintage.”
Domaine Gilles Robin
Gilles Robin took over the running of this vineyard in 1996, with the freedom to produce his own wines. With a history of winegrowing spanning four generations, Gilles' aim was to realise the potential of the 35-year-old vines. He immediately used only natural fertilizers and reduced yields to just 40 hectolitres per hectare (8/10 bunches per vine) to give a richer concentration of fruit and quality. A new winery was built into the ground to allow the wines to be moved delicately by gravity, rather than being pumped. Gilles' vineyard now extends to Saint Joseph (where he makes a tiny volume) and Hermitage, the core vineyard averages forty years old, and the wines gain in subtlety and balance with every vintage.
Gilles says of his wines, 'there is not a unique Syrah but rather a full spectrum of characteristics and potential expressed by Syrah varieties', to which might be added 'the spectrum of flavours of Syrah on different terroirs' as well, because his vineyards encompass the range of styles the appellation can produce. The 'Rochas' vineyard has deep soils which make for big wines with rustic tannins which take time to soften. It always produces tiny grapes which need fairly strong extraction to get the best of their deep, wild black fruit and spice notes. The 'Monico' vineyard is made up of broken-up rock and little pebbles and a deep clay. The clay retains water well and this is perfect for hot summers. A higher-toned red and black fruit character, ripe blackcurrant and blackberry, with elegant rather than massive tannins. Finally, the 'Terres Rouges' vineyard is made of gravels and red clay, typical of the 'Terrasse des Châssis'. The Syrah here displays finesse, elegance and aromatic complexity. The strong iron oxide content of this plot enables a maximum phenolic maturity. Intense colour, with purple highlights, aromas of violets, black fruits, sweet spices (pepper, nutmeg) and slightly smokiness. On the palate, this Syrah has silky tannins and fine minerality. All of these styles together make for beautifully balanced wines, the different cuvées emphasising the differing characteristics of primal fruit and sophisticated and complex depth. The vineyard has been organic since 2009.
Domaine Graeme & Julie Bott
A love story and a bit of good fortune; a love of the Syrah grape that led Graeme to the Rhone and the love of his life Julie, who came together whilst working at the prestigious cellars of Stephane Ogier. Theirs is a back story of adventure and spirit and one of serendipity too.
Our relationship with the pair stretches back some 8 years or so, when we often stopped and shared a beer after the Marché aux vins in Ampuis every January, it was no surprise when they told us they were setting out on their own journey.
The surprise came when they discovered that the house they had purchased in Verin, complete with 0.35 hectare of garden, was within the appellation of Condrieu, between the in-demand Coteau de Chéry and the illustrious Chateau Grillet. Graeme & Julie like to pick early to capture the freshness, the wines tend be expressive, bright and pure.
Watch the videos: Domaine G&J Bott or Condrieu Lieu-Dit L'ALEAU.
Graeme Bott on the 2023 vintage:
“The Condrieu degree in 2023 was 12.5° to 13°. If you were on top of the vineyards, you were OK, providing you had treated them.
Yields were better than what we could actually see, and we had ended 95% of the white harvest before the 18 September rain. In 2022, we sprayed the least ever because it was so dry, and in 2023 we sprayed the most ever because it was so wet. The reds are awesome.”
Domaine Lionnet
We came across the wines of Domaine Lionnet purely by chance one day at the Marché-Aux-Vins in Ampuis. On a walk across the bridge from Tain l’Hermitage to Tournon to blow away the cobwebs, we took a detour into a dusty wineshop full of Rhône treasures. Here the caviste, when asked for the up-and-coming domaines of the region, guided us a bottle of Cornas Terre Brulée and a love affair began.
More than an infatuation, the wines seem to get better with every vintage. Already the 2021 is extraordinarily good and is drinking now - we cannot wait to see how the 2022s develop, they tasted remarkable from barrel in October.
This is a truly lovely estate that is run immaculately by Corinne & Ludovic. Ludovic Izerable came to this domaine by marriage to Corinne, the daughter of Pierre and granddaughter of Michel Lionnet. She took the reins in 2003. The Izerables immediately converted the domaine to organic farming and have been certified since 2009.
The word 'Cornas' derives from the Celtic word for 'burnt earth' hence the name of the Domaine's flagship cuvée 'Terre Brûlée'. The domaine is a mere 4 hectares, in Cornas and Saint Joseph. In the latter, their vines are in Châteaubourg, the southernmost village of the appellation, at 300m altitude. In Cornas, they have 7 parcels of vines, mostly between 40 and over 100 years old, with one parcel of young vines planted in 2008. No pesticides, herbicides or commercial fertilisers are used, and the soil is worked by horse and a small caterpillar-tracked machine.
The grapes are handpicked and vinified as whole bunches - nothing is added at any stage and the vinification takes place with naturally occurring yeasts. As a result, the harvest has to be ultra-clean and that contributes to the aromatic purity of the wines. After the alcoholic fermentation with pigeage the free run wine is drawn off and the marc is pressed gently in a vertical press from the 19th century. The malolactic fermentation is allowed to take place in resin or stainless steel vats, and only once completed do the wines get racked and transferred to barrel for two winters - a total of 18 months - half in 225l and half in demi-muids of 600l. No new wood is used. The wines are then bottled without fining or filtration.
For the Corinne & Ludovic, 2023 was:
“A winegrower's vintage where each decision taken had an impact on the year's results. A vintage of risk with potential of disease pressure, hail, rain and heat. Also a vintage of complexity in the vines because the differences from one plot to another, from one terroir to another are marked, in the end I am happy with the results.”
Domaine Patrick & Christophe Bonnefond
Christophe and Patrick took over this family domaine in 1990. It extends to ten hectares, with small amounts of IGP 'Collines Rhodaniennes' Viognier (0.5 hectare) and Syrah (1 hectare) as well as the Condrieu and the three cuvées of Côte-Rôtie.
The Condrieu (1 hectare) comes from the granite soils of the Côte Chatillon. It is fermented in 440l barrels (with 30% new wood) at 18C and aged on the lees for ten months.
The 'Colline de Couzou' Côte-Rôtie comes from several plots in the north and south of the appellation, on schist and granite, about six hectares in total. All the reds are fermented in stainless steel with around 20% whole bunches. The Couzou is then aged in 400l barrels for eighteen months, with 20% new wood. Production hovers just above 2000 cases a year.
The Côte Rozier (0.5 hectare) is in the north of the appellation, on schist and mica-schist. The vinification is the same, but the percentage of new wood for this and the Rochains goes up to 30% and the élevage in barrel is extended to 20 months. Only about 160 cases a year. The Rochains (1 hectare), a slightly bigger cuvée at 300 cases a year, is also in the north of the appellation, the other side of La Landonne, on a soil of schist with lots of iron oxide. These are the oldest vines of the domaine.
Christophe & Patrick Bonnefond have been at the forefront of everything good in Côte-Rotie for the past 20 years, with great sites in the north of the appellation as well as a small site in Tupin-et-Semons to the south. It has been fascinating watching the domaine develop into one of the go-to names for quality. The brothers have toned down their use of new oak in recent years and Christophe’s daughter Léa has joined the family business, adding a more gentle touch.
Léa Bonnefond on the 2023 vintage:
“Superb vintage” for Bonnefond it was, “A little dry and sunny - we now have wines that look like 2022 but even more powerful.”
Domaine Rémi Niero
This is one of the original domaines of the Condrieu appellation, and perhaps without the dedication to Viognier from Niero (and the likes of Vernay), Condrieu would not have the world-class reputation it has today.
The domaine existed 45 years ago when the whole appellation was just 8 hectares of vines (it's now 200 hectares), under the name Pinchon. Rémi's father Robert married the Pinchon daughter, so now, having been Domaine Niero-Pinchon for a bit, it has been shortened to simply Niero when Rémi took over.
The smart and charming Rémi started to work alongside his father in 2004 and today oversees the domaine along with his wife Krystel. They are the 3rd generation of winemakers and continue the tradition of the estate's refined and pure wines from Viognier and Syrah working from their cellars in Condrieu. The domaine has recently fully converted to organic farming. The wines, much like the estate, are pristine and pure.
The Condrieus come from just over 4 hectares of vines, all in the commune of Condrieu itself, in the parcels Coteau de Chéry, La Roncharde, Côte Chatillon, La Caille, Vergelas and Corbéry. All of these are considered some of the of the best sites in the world for Viognier. The wines are aged in tank (60%) and barrel (40%) for a year.
The Côte-Rôties come from two sites, La Viallière and Le Coteau de Bassenon, from the southern end of the appellation, a total of nearly 2 hectares. They are aged for 16 months in barrel, with 20% new wood. Along with the exceptional Saint Joseph there is also a new Crozes Hermitage in the range.
Adrien Encontre on the 2023 vintage:
“2023 was a hard vintage to read & understand, we worked constantly in the vineyards, and ultimately it was a good vintage for us. It reminds me of maybe the 2019 & the 2020”
Maison Bruyère & David
The best way to discover what is going on in a wine region is to eat and drink in the local restaurants and ask who’s up-and-coming. Our buyers were eating in Condrieu and having a refreshing beer after a hard day of tasting (it is thirsty work!) when they came across this new venture from friends Justin Bruyère & Sylvain David.
Their story is very simple one: two friends united by a passion for wine - as Justin says 'all beautiful projects are born around a glass of wine'.
Justin has deep roots within the region, his grandfather being Michel Delas of famed Hermitage name Delas Frères, whilst Sylvan brings a wealth of winemaking experience, most notably working in the cellars of Domaine des Terres Dorées in Morgon and also the brilliant Domaine Gerin in Côte-Rôtie.
These two relative youngsters in the region, have real passion, drive and enthusiasm and it shows in the wines.
Justin Bruyère on the 2023 vintage:
‘I like the finesse and the fruit with the vintage - there is of course elegance, and a drinkability that is direct. It's a vintage that is accessible to all.’
