Avenue Vine

WBW #19 “When in Rhone” Avenue Vine's First Wine Blogging Wednesday

Focusing on getting a blend from the motherland, specifically Rhone, and keeping in mind a somewhat “modern style.” I confined my search to Jathan’s suggestion: “Syrah,” “Viognier” as a target blend--why not venture to the extreme northern reaches of the Rhone Valley, too?

Cote Roties splashed to mind. A meal of leeks, mushrooms, succulent meat, rich creamy risotto ameliorated and saturated the cognition.

The Wine: E. GUIGAL, Côte-Rôtie Brune et Blonde 2001, (7.5cl)--Type: Rhone, Country: France, Region: Rhone Valley - Cote-Rotie.

The Rhône, consisting of two distinct viticultural regions. The northern Rhone, land of Syrah–the dominant varietal. The southern Rhone home to varieties such as Grenache or Mourvèdre. Separated north from south a large expanse of land, vineyards are few and far between.

Steep slopes where cables pull workers and bins of grape up the hills. Wines made to lay down for the long haul.

The GUIGAL family, maker of this Cote-Rotie, owns vineyards in Condrieu and in the Côte-Rôtie with illustrious plots producing wines such as ‘La Doriane’ in Condrieu, the famous growths of the Côte-Rôtie ‘La Mouline’, ‘La Turque’ and ‘La Landonne’, Côte-Rôtie Château d’Ampuis, Hermitage ‘Ex-Voto’, produced only in the great vintages and Saint-Joseph ‘Lieu-Dit Saint-Joseph’ in red and white, as well as the famous Saint-Joseph red « Vignes de l’Hospice ». These wines have each become flagships of their appellations.

In the cellars of the GUIGAL estate in Ampuis, the northern appellations of the Rhône Valley are produced and aged. These are the appellations of Côte-Rôtie, Condrieu, Hermitage, Saint-Joseph and Crozes-Hermitage. The great appellations of the Southern Rhône; Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Gigondas, Tavel and Côtes-du-Rhône are also aged in the Ampuis cellars

The vineyard of the Côte-Rôtie covers approximately 215 hectares comprising the Côte Brune, situated uphill from the Reynard stream and the Côte Blonde, which is situated below. These vines were originally planted over 24 centuries ago by the Romans.

The Côte Brune, exclusively planted with Syrah vines, is recognisable by its virile vegetation.
The Côte Blonde is more serenely feminine due to the inclusion of Viognier vines which add refinement to the Syrah.

A sort of ‘fertile museum’, the yield from this vineyard is naturally limited.

In the Côte-Rôtie, the GUIGAL house owns several jewels including the Côte-Rôtie « La Mouline » situated on the Côte blonde, distinguished by its form which resembles a Roman amphitheatre.

Situated on the Côte Brune, La Turque benefits from full Southern exposure and from a complex terroir made up of shale and iron oxide which lend finesse and strength to this wine.

La Landonne is impressive with its breathtaking slopes of nearly 45 degrees. La Landonne is planted exclusively with Syrah.

Last but not least, the Côte-Rôtie Château d’Ampuis is produced from ancient plots which are amongst some of the finest of the Domaine GUIGAL.

But alas were only Blonde this WBW! So much for vineyards, cellars and appellations on to:

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The Review:

2001 Côte-Rôtie Brune et Blonde de Guigal; $70.00, (90 points, or 9.0)–This bottle, APPEARANCES: Bright deep dark ruby red rim to core–a pleasure to look upon. NOSE: Clean, pronounce intense aromas of fruit, floral, spice and oak: red and black fruit, raspberry pie, blackberries, pepper, oak and rose. PALATE: Dry yet supple, balanced acidity, soft moderate tannins, medium bodied, pronounced fruit intensity of raspberry, blackberry, meat, leather,smoky vanilla and just a hint of earthiness. CONCLUSION: Nicely layerd against scarcely perceptible tannins and acidity, long and clean as it pleasantly lilngers–a well made wine, good for meals.

ADDITIONAL TASTING NOTES: Clean, soft, balanced, layered, interestingly complex–a pleasantly graceful Cote-Rotie. Leather, berries, smoke, meat, red currant, wood came to mind as I went through the evening and meal. A bite of meat with this wine sweetened and made me think of the bull fights; leeks mushroom, parmigiano laced risotto brought of flavors of earthiness–a very good wine to accompany a rich meaty meal.

About the Wine:

Grape varietals: Syrah 96%, Viognier 4%.
Soil type: Plots on steep slopes.
Côte Blonde : Silicone limestone soil
Côte Brune : soil rich in iron oxyde.
Average age of vines: 35 years.
Winemaking: Closed stainless steel tanks. Automatic punching down and temperature controlled fermentaion. Average 3 ½ weeks in tanks.
Maturation: Minimum 24 months in oak barrels.
Average yield: 38 Hl/Hectares.
Average annual production: 250,000 bottles.

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The Meal - Pairing, etc.:

Poached Tenderloin:
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14 to 20 ounce, center cut filet mignons.
Enough olive oil, or you choice oil, to cover-- immerse the tenderloin in a small saucepan.
Pepper, garlic, rosemary, time–your choice–FRESH.
.
.
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Roasted Leeks:
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2 large leeks split lengthwise and rinsed; rub all over with Olive oil, and a few grinds of pepper.
Place on parch smith lined over tray, bake for 15-20 minutes.
(Note: next time I’ll just poach the leeks, too!)

Porta Bello Mushrooms:
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1 to 1.5 pounds porta bello mushrooms-wipe with moist cloth, slice or quarter.
In hot large skillet with olive oil and butter to medium high heat–watch and sniff for the first whiffs of browning butter--saute mushrooms until lightly browned.
deglaze with Cote Rotie

Risotto:
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butter
olive oil
shallots 3 to 5
garlic couple cloves
arboreal rice
red wine
beef stock
salt and pepper to taste
Parmigiano Regiono
flat leaf (Italian) parsley

Garnish risotto and mushroom with Parmigiano Regiono and flat leaf (Italian) parsley

Additional Articles & Information:
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“WBW #19 When in Rhone,” March 08, 2006

“Genesis Wine Blog Wednesday,” February 23, 2006