Winemaker Notes
Pale yellow with golden highlights. Intense aromas of yellow fruit and white flowers. Rich on the palate, yet with a perfect balance and a long, persistent finish.
An ideal pairing with shellfish and roasted poultry.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Fascinating nose of hay, fresh nuts and lime zest with just a hint of beeswax. Ripe and concentrated, but also vibrant with stunning wet-stone freshness, plus a touch of salty licorice that make this an exciting and innovative white St.-Joseph. Long, mineral finish. A blend of 70% roussanne and 30% marsanne.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
This relatively new producer—a Kiwi husband and French wife—has a sure hand with white wines. The 2020 Saint Joseph Blanc is a crisp, refreshing take on the appellation, with notes of honeyed pear balanced against vibrant citrus. A barrel-fermented 70-30 blend of Roussanne and Marsanne from the villages of Chavanay and Saint-Pierre de Boeuf, the wine is medium-bodied and easy to drink, with a fine, silky finish and ample length.
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Decanter
Pear and sweet spices, rounded and generous on the palate, this has tension and a pithy, citrusy finish. Has intensity and bite; an edgy, nervy style.
Full-bodied and flavorful, white Rhône blends originate from France’s Rhône Valley. Today these blends are also becoming popular in other regions. Typically some combination of Grenache Blanc, Marsanne, Roussanne and Viognier form the basis of a white Rhône blend with varying degrees of flexibility depending on the exact appellation. Somm Secret—In the Northern Rhône, blends of Marsanne and Roussanne are common but the south retains more variety. Marsanne, Roussanne as well as Bourboulenc, Clairette, Picpoul and Ugni Blanc are typical.
Spanning the longest stretch of river in the northern Rhône—from Condrieu in the north, to Cornas in the south—the heart of St.-Joseph lies directly across the Rhône River from Hermitage. While its soils are basically the same as Hermitage: granite, supplemented by sand and gravel, its east facing slope receives less sunlight than Hermitage, which causes less overall berry ripening on its Syrah vines. However, some of the best of them can rival any fine expression of Hermitage, Cote-Rotie or Cornas with concentrated black fruits, dark spices, crushed rock and violets. A general advantage of the region is that its Syrahs typically don’t need as much time in the bottle compared to a Cote-Rotie or Hermitage and are much easier on the bank account!
A textbook St.-Joseph red is firm with a core of minerality that is enhanced by savory and peppery qualities. Aromas and flavors of smoke, olives, herbs, and violets are common; its wines are dense in red and black fruit.
St.-Joseph is also a source of fine northern Rhône white wine. Viognier, Marsanne and Roussanne grow well here and can be blended or made into single varietal wines. St.-Joseph whites are full and silky with citrus, pear and pineapple flavors and a rich bouquet reminiscent of honeysuckle, toasted nuts, spice and caramel.