france: rhone
Saint Cosme, Rhône Valley
Driven by an irrepressive curiosity, Louis Barruol, the young Turk of Gigondas, launched a micro-négociant enterprise in 1997 so he could try his hand in other appellations. Over the past ten years, Louis has sought out and discovered some dynamite vineyards throughout the Rhône and developed close relationships with several of the region's more meticulous growers. In addition to his Gigondas wines, Louis now makes three northern Rhône wines every year—Côte Rôtie, Saint Joseph and Condrieu—as well as an array of other southern Rhône wines, including an extraordinary Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Today, with the savoir-faire of a vigneron, he pushes the envelope just as hard with these wines as he does with his Gigondas. A minimalist, he looks for the best terroirs, old vines, and fully ripe fruit; the rest, he says, is a matter of paying attention.
Northern Rhône
The following are Louis' notes:
- 2008 Côte-Rôtie: 100% Serine planted on schist terroir. Aged 15 months in new oak and bottled without filtration. "Côte Rôtie is often a good subject: its inimitable personality makes people talk! This terroir is the most extraordinary one in the northern Rhone, I’m convinced about this. We keep going with our work on the Ampuis terroirs and 2008 brought this great freshness we always look for. The wine is balanced and has the entire aromatic spectrum going from the empyreumatic smells ending up in the ancient roses. I know exactly when to open a bottle of Côte-Rôtie: it has to be shared with the right person at the right time. It’s always a time of joy which gives some meaning to life.. This bottle of 2008 is very classical, it’s not heavy, it’s straightforward, it gets precision, it’s open, aromatic and tender. The way 2004 tastes at the moment makes me think that some vintages deserve to get a fundamental right: be judged only after a couple of years, when they get their proper expression. Bacon, cold ash, graphite, coal, violet, rose."
- 2008 Saint Joseph: 100% Serine from late-ripening granite terroir. Aged twelve months in a combination of new (20%) and older (one to two-year-old) barrels. Bottled without any filtration. "I will defend forever the granitic terroirs of Saint Joseph which match perfectly with the ancient Serines sélections massales. Those two had to meet once in the right place, under the right climate, to go for a great adventure together. This year was cool and gave wines with freshness carrying a classical style. It was ripe, with significant sweetness. There is no austerity in this wine. The Serines express on a very precise way in such a cool year and the aromas are well shown because "the acidity shows off" as my great uncle Albert would say. This phenomenon can be shown on the white wines. The bottling was done earlier than usual in order to keep this great fruit full of finesse. I imagine this wine with a piece of veal with morels, or with stuffed quails. Such pleasures given by granitic rocks combined with very small grapes: isn’t it a great story? Jasmine, bergamot orange, blond tobacco, roasted bread."
- 2009 Condrieu: 100% Viognier from granite terroir. Aged eight months in a combination of new (30%) and older (one to two-year-old) barrels. "Last year, I explained that 2008 had been a difficult year for Condrieu. The tasting shows now that I was wrong and demonstrates that the freshness is a crucial element to have success in Condrieu winemaking. Clearly, it is very easy to do the following mistake: pick the Condrieu grapes too late. Especially since the climate is warming up. We picked early in 2009 and our Condrieu has a good balance: I am happy. The sweetness combines well with a fresh and liquorish length. 2009 offered in the northern Rhone ideal weather conditions for white wines. We will drink Condrieu 2009 with truffles (if you find some this year), asparagus, goat cheeses and blue cheeses. The wine will be bottled per gravity in June 2010, after the malolactic fermentation. It will be very slightly filtered. Available in June 2010. Orange skin, violet, mango, liquorish."
- 2007 Châteauneuf-du-Pape: 50% Grenache; 30% Mourvèdre, 10% Syrah and 10% Cinsault in La Crau and Valori; aged twenty-four months in two-to-four-year-old barrels. Bottled without filtration. "Without a doubt, it’s the best Châteauneuf ever made at Saint Cosme since 2001. All the power and personality supposed to characterize a Châteauneuf can be found in this wine. 2007 has been exceptional in Châteauneuf: what a vintage!! The 24 months ageing were necessary more than ever. It is surprising to see how finesse combines well with power. In 2007, some Syrah and Cinsault were added to the usual Mourvèdre /Grenache blend and they brought more complexity. These vines are managed organically; this is why they give such a purity. This bottle will evolve well because the 2007 brings the balance, which is important for a long-life wine. It is easy to imagine this wine with a Roquefort, a roasted pigeon or a good piece of beef. It is definitely a wine of gastronomy, a winter wine, a Christmas wine, a fireplace wine. Truffles, tapenade, garrigue, cherries, gingerbread, aromas of Christmas!"
- 2009 Côtes du Rhône: 100% Syrah; aged in vat. Limestony sands, red clay and rolling stones. "Our Côtes du Rhône is always the wine which makes you discover the vintage because we release it early. In 2009, their structure is solid and impeccable. The wines are crunchy and ripe because of the dry summer. After the fresh 2008, we come back to a stronger wine with length. The Syrahs on the rolling stone are magnificent, with a lot of "retained quality" and the Syrahs from Vinsobres bring the complexity and the depth. I do think that the Côtes du Rhône 2009 will look like 2005, with a similar tight profile, characteristic of a great vintage. This wine, made to be drunk in its youth, is often quite surprising: when we open 2000 or 2001, they still taste great! The two vineyards we have been using over the years are incredibly consistent in quality: I call them chameleons-terroirs!!! They adapt themselves very well to different vintages and conditions. They have good natural resources. It will be available in February-March 2010. It will be fresh and ready to be crunched. Blackcurrant, blackberry, graphite, liquorish."
- 2009 Côtes du Rhône white: 20% Roussanne (red clay with gravel), 30% Viognier (limestone), 30% Marsanne (limestony sand), 10% Clairette (clay in Gigondas), 10% Picpoul de Pinet (limestony sand). Fermented in small casks and aged on the lees for six months. "We had a really hot summer, then we decided to pick the whites as early as possible to preserve a maximum of acidity. It’s been a real race I have to admit, a race against the sun. The débourbages have been a bit difficult: we had to do double débourbages to get a clear juice. The débourbage is the most important stage in a white wine winemaking. It gives (or not!) the purity and the precision of the wine, as well as the neat aromas. The grape which showed the most interesting quality in 2009 is Marsanne. This shows that Marsanne is able to adapt itself to various weather conditions. It is a grape that I like more and more. It gets a natural freshness and is able to age on a very surprising way. Our Côtes du Rhône blanc is a little bit richer than the 2008 and gets nice complex aromas of exotic fruits and white peach. It will be a good idea to taste it for a springtime lunch. Taste this wine in its youth to take advantage of its freshness and energy!! Peach, liquorish, exotic fruits (banana), apricot."
- Little James’ Basket Press - Vin de Table red - Non Vintage: Solera from 1999 to 2009. Fermented and aged in vat. 100% Grenache. "Little James is at Saint Cosme the wine of freedom. Our Solera is getting more and more complexity year after year. When we add the current vintage, the solera gains a new element without changing too much in style. A vintage wine is like a country you would visit for the first time: it’s new and marvelous to discover. A Solera looks like a very nice country you would have visited many times. But every time in a different way.. This wine maintains the spirit of the Burgundian merchants in the ancient times, who used to craft nice wines without taking in count the vintages. Their only goal was the pleasure. The 2010 version of little James will contain 50% of 2009, blended with 50% from all the vintages back to 1999. Writing this makes me think that this solera was begun ten years ago!! Happy birthday James!!! For me, Little James will always be a nice bunch of fresh violets tightened to a heart. Almonds, oriental spices, gingerbread, strawberry compote, jasmine."
- 2009 Little James’ Basket Press - Vin de Pays d'Oc white: Viognier/Sauvignon. Fermented and aged in vat. "It is not possible to live without a good, aromatic and refreshing bottle of white wine in the fridge, ready to be tasted with an unexpected friend. It is very important! This is what we think about when we make this Sauvignon/Viognier. Its quality related to price is always exceptional. The mountains of Minervois have a cool microclimate very well adapted to the Sauvignon grape. Our Viognier comes from a vine which is a sélection massale from Condrieu, planted in 1982. We work and ferment these grapes on a very classical way. We look for freshness, energy and aromatic expression: this wine should taste like an elixir of youth! It can be tasted for aperitif and works with many different kinds of food: roasted vegetables, little rocky fishes, stilton, bleu de bresse, asparagus, chicken with morels, risotto, pasta with mascarpone, etc. Little James red retains itself. Little James white is explosive. Bottled in January 2010. Grapefruit, mango, lemon skin, melon, peach, liquorish."
Southern Rhône
The estate wines of Château de Saint Cosme, Gigondas
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