Northern Rhone Valley, France (Cornas)
100% Syrah
93 Points Wine Advocate: “Bottled in the spring of 2024 and crafted from 15-year-old vines, the 2022 Saint-Joseph Les Cotes displays a smoky, slightly reduced bouquet featuring dark cherries, violets and dark wild berries. Medium to full-bodied and sweet on entry with a layered, textured palate, it has good depth at the core, a fleshy structure despite a structuring chassis and velvety tannins, concluding with an ethereal, fresh and dark berries-inflected finish. Originating from a parcel in the commune of Mauves, this Cornas is exquisite yet a bit austere; however, additional time in the bottle should help to mellow its edges.”
 
The dish:
Duckling in a pastry crust, with apples, chestnuts and Ardèche honey
“The exquisite butteriness and crispness of the flaky pastry with the chestnuts blends perfectly with the acidulousness of the apples. Exactly the same sensations are found in the wine, with a very delicious blackcurrant fruitiness enhanced by the overall liveliness of Saint-Joseph.”
The chef:
Guillaume Besson, “Le Jeu de Quilles” wine cellar eatery, Lyon 1er.
 
OUR VINE GROWING AND WINEMAKING
• Organic certification for the vines and wine from the 2016 vintage, and biodynamic methods used.
• Syrah replanted from 1999; vines trained and pruned in the Gobelet style and supported by stakes.
• Hand-picked harvests.
• Majority of the harvest de-stemmed, 10 to 20% whole grape bunches, depending on the vintage.
• Fermentation with natural yeasts and maceration for several weeks in stainless steel vats, with cap-punching and pumping-over done twice a day.
• Maturation in 400-litre barrels for 16 months, with no new barrels.
• Amount of sulphite reduced: 73 mg/l total SO2 (100 mg/litre authorised in organic winemaking).
• Production: 3.627 bottles
• Ageing potential: 10 years.