Intense and generous with notes of black fruit and subtle touches of spice. It is full and rich on the palate with a great freshness. Tannins are silky and elegant with a palate dominated by red fruits.
With roots dating back to 1808, M. Chapoutier is one of the oldest companies in the Rhône Valley. Yet, its world renown and the quality of wine can truly be accredited to the arrival of Michel Chapoutier in 1990. His willingness to change the set way, thirst for knowledge and open-mindedness, together with his drive to seek, discover and reflect the full potential of the terroirs, letting the soils express their true character, has put their wines firmly on the wine world map.
2020 will undoubtedly stand out as an atypical year. The winter was mild marked, by a water shortage over the period, although reserves from 2019 helped to alleviate this. Budbreak was 10 days earlier than in previous vintages. Although snow fell after budbreak and frost was a real risk, it only affected a few vines in Beaumont Moneux. June brought plentiful heat and sunshine in the Northern Rhône and some welcome rain in the Southern Rhône. Grenache in the Southern Rhône looked beautiful and Syrah in the north perfectly balanced. Harvest was earlier than usual starting in early September and proceeded calmly and without any weather pressures. Marked by exceptional earliness and scorching mid-summer heat, the 2020 vintage offers up wines full of elegance and pedigree. They have all the markers of great ageing potential thanks to preserved acidity and remarkable phenolic maturity.
The de-stemmed grapes are fermented in concrete tanks. The alcoholic fermentation temperature is controlled at around 25°C to preserve as much varietal aromas as possible. Gentle pumping over operations are carried out on a daily basis to delicately extract aromatic substances, colouring matter and tannins. At the end of the alcoholic fermentation, the temperature is increased to allow the polymerization of the tannins during the maceration phase. Post fermentation maceration lasts about four weeks. Wine is mainly aged in concrete vats, with a less important part in 600 litre barrels. Bottling takes place 12 months later.
Enjoy with beef, games and roasted vegetables.
