Vidal-Fleury Crozes-Hermitage 1999
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2017-
Jeb
Dunnuck -
Robert
Parker
Vidal Fleury was founded in 1781 as a wine grower and proprietor of vineyards in the Cote Rotie. With more than two centuries of continuous operation, it's undisputedly the oldest functioning winery and wine firm in the Rhone Valley.
Founder Joseph Vidal strove to produce wines that expressed the typicity of the various soils and to achieve the highest degree of quality possible. True to the founder's goals. the winery continues to produce wines that are the finest expression of their appelation. Today Vidal Fleury offers a comprehensive range of red, white and rose wines from the Rhone Valley. Recognizing the enormous potential of Vidal Fleury and the value of its brand, the successful Rhone winemaker Marcel Guigal bought the company in 1986. Modern equipment in a spotless environment is used to implement the traditional methods in winemaking.
All red wines and selected white wines are matured adn aged in oak barrels and casks. Selected cuvees are aged in new oak for part or all of the maturation process.
Marked by an unmistakable deep purple hue and savory aromatics, Syrah makes an intense, powerful and often age-worthy red. Native to the Northern Rhône, Syrah achieves its maximum potential in the steep village of Hermitage and plays an important component in the Red Rhône Blends of the south, adding color and structure to Grenache and Mourvèdre. Syrah is the most widely planted grape of Australia and is important in California and Washington. Sommelier Secret—Such a synergy these three create together, the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre trio often takes on the shorthand term, “GSM.”
A long and narrow valley producing flavorful red, white, and rosé wines, the Rhône is bisected by the river of the same name and split into two distinct sub-regions—north and south. While a handful of grape varieties span the entire length of the Rhône valley, there are significant differences between the two zones in climate and geography as well as the style and quantity of Rhône wines produced. The Northern Rhône, with its continental climate and steep hillside vineyards, is responsible for a mere 5% or less of the greater region’s total output. The Southern Rhône has a much more Mediterranean climate, the aggressive, chilly Mistral wind and plentiful fragrant wild herbs known collectively as ‘garrigue.’
In the Northern Rhône, the only permitted red variety is Syrah, which in the appellations of St.-Joseph, Crozes-Hermitage, Hermitage, Cornas and Côte-Rôtie, it produces velvety black-fruit driven, savory, peppery red wines often with telltale notes of olive, game and smoke. Full-bodied, perfumed whites are made from Viognier in Condrieu and Château-Grillet, while elsewhere only Marsanne and Roussanne are used, with the former providing body and texture and the latter lending nervy acidity. The wines of the Southern Rhône are typically blends, with the reds often based on Grenache and balanced by Syrah, Mourvèdre, and an assortment of other varieties. All three northern white varieties are used here, as well as Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Bourbelenc and more. The best known sub-regions of the Southern Rhône are the reliable, wallet-friendly Côtes du Rhône and the esteemed Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Others include Gigondas, Vacqueyras and the rosé-only appellation Tavel.