There are far more growers, making and bottling their own wine and every year more growers are tempted to go it alone. Today the situation is very different from what it was thirty years ago. The co-ops, jealous of the success and prestige of the big négoce houses also started to bottle themselves. With the phenomenal success of Rhône wines came more estate bottling. Even the co-operatives, always strong in the Rhône, tended to sell in bulk to merchants either in the Rhône itself or elsewhere. The north is responsible for the most prestigious wines while the south is most important in terms of volume.īefore 1990, most Rhône wines were sold by négociants like Jaboulet and Chapoutier. The Rhône is divided into two unequal parts, north and south, separated by a twenty mile stretch of rather green country where there are no vines. But like most classification systems, it is not perfect and the name of the producer is just as important. Though created over seventy years ago, when most of the south was planted with olive trees and many northern vineyards semi-abandoned, the appellations do give a clue to what is in the bottle. The Appellation Contrôlée system was created in Châteauneuf-du-Pape to improve quality and guarantee provenance and it was instrumental in getting the Rhône better recognised. For generations Burgundy was made unnaturally full bodied by the addition of some Châteauneuf. There was a long period of relative obscurity when Bordeaux and Burgundy were closer to markets in northern Europe, but canny merchants knew their Rhônes well and a little addition of Hermitage to a Lafite was considered a good thing. Happily, their food friendliness is not limited to regional classics but extends to the dishes we enjoy here, from Monday to Sunday. Many have the potential to age well and The Society deliberately keeps wines back for two to three years, sometimes longer, so that members can enjoy them when they have gained that extra bit of complexity.įrom Lyon to Marseille, the Rhône Valley encapsulates much of France’s renowned gastronomy and, not surprisingly, has the wines to match. The Rhône is the second largest producer of AC wine after Bordeaux, and, like Bordeaux can offer the widest range of prices, from everyday value to the finest, most desirable bottles. Increasingly, we are seeing exciting wines from the valley’s hinterland, in particular, outlying districts, such as Ventoux and the Luberon. Today we can count on as many as 90 Rhône suppliers, from the continental north, where the steep slopes are home to the syrah grape, to the south where a multitude of varieties basks in the Mediterranean climate. An unprecedented run of excellent vintages in recent years accelerated that process, fuelling a growing fan base among wine writers, merchants and drinkers. The Society saw the region’s potential, recognising, in particular, the way in which it was being transformed by a growing multitude of independent growers. A byword for Mediterranean generosity and warmth, the style has been emulated the world over. The Rhône Valley occupies a central space in the world of wine.
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