Domaine Georges Vernay2016 Côte-Rôtie, Blonde du Seigneur, Georges Vernay
Rhône Valley, FranceVintage: 2015
Although Domaine Georges Vernay has built its reputation around its excellent Condrieu white wines, its reds should not be neglected, especially ones from the Côte-Rôtie. From a 5 ha plot of vines, Vernay’s Côte-Rôtie is amongst the most exceptional wines from the same appellation. Thanks to a perfectly mastered elegant wine style, Christine Vernay successfully expresses the elegance and depth of syrah; never over maturing or over ageing.
2016 has been hailed as one of the great vintages and only 1200 cases were made in 2016 of the Blonde du Seigneur, so demand is high. In the glass this 2016 vintage is a dark deep wine offering a mineral nose with notes of smoke, black fruit, black olive, and pepper – always enhanced by a floral component. It is aromatic on the palate, with firm but smooth tannins, and a beautiful lingering finish. Its aromatic mouth, with well-built but smoothed tannins, continues in a beautiful final length. An immediate pleasure that slowly, over the years, grows to be the most typical expression of the Syrah from Cote-Rotie.
Why we love it
Magical Syrah – combines a powerful side with very floral notes.
Notable Awards
94/100. Josh Raynolds – Vinous.com. “Dark purple. Bright and energetic on the nose, displaying spice- and mineral-tinged dark berry, cherry and floral scents that pick up smoke and cracked pepper nuances as the wine opens up. Juicy and seamless in texture, offering sweet black raspberry, cherry liqueur and violet pastille flavors and a hint of salty olive. Fine-grained tannins add grip to an impressively long, lively finish that echoes the floral and cherry notes.”
93 points Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. “Vernay’s 2016 Cote Rotie Blonde du Seigneur has 5% Viognier and spent 18 months in 30% new oak. It’s a lovely wine, brimming with perfumes of violets, roses and jasmine, plus plenty of raspberry fruit, all framed by hints of pencil shavings. It’s medium to full-bodied yet with a delicately silky texture and ample freshness on the long finish. “
Whats in the bottle
Syrah 95%, Viognier 5%
12 Mixed Bottles *
£65.25
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* As part of a mixed case of any 12 bottles
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Description
Georges Vernay is known as the “King of Condrieu” and was responsible for the growth and worldwide recognition of this small appellation during the 1950s. His estate covers 22 hectares of vineyards, six of which are in the Côte Rôtie appellation. The steep and uneven vineyards make mechanical labour impossible. The vines are manually cultivated without the use of residual herbicide or insecticide. Georges’ daughter, Christine, returned to her roots with Paul Anselem, her Parisian husband, and has looked after the winemaking since 1997, gaining worldwide recognition for her Côte Rôtie wines. In 2019, Domaine Georges Vernay was awarded the prestigious 3 stars by ‘La Revue du Vin de France’.
Côte Rôtie is a prestigious red wine appellation at the northern tip of the Rhône Valley wine region, where the vineyards are situated on steep slopes – the Côtes. The three hectares of vineyard is located in the parish of Semons in the plot ‘Coteau de Bassenon’; and in the parish of Ampuis, in the plots of ‘Lancement’ and ‘Tupin’. The vineyards are situated on South facing granite terraces. Due to the steep slopes in the vineyards, these 30-year-old vines are maintained manually, without the use of weed killers and all treatments use organic products.
The grapes were manually harvested at full maturity. They were then destemmed and fermented at controlled temperatures in vats with a long maceration of two to three weeks. The wine was matured in oak barrels, of which 30% were new, for a period of 18 months.
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