Francois Villard Condrieu De Poncins 2013
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A cook by training, François Villard developed a passion for wine at the age of 20. Not knowing how to integrate the world of wine, he completed a year of Professional Brevet in sommellerie at Tain l'Hermitage. The meetings were decisive and gave him the desire to become a winegrower. Subsequently, he enrolled in Davayé, with a view to obtaining the Professional Agricultural Certificate, option in viticulture and oenology.
At the same time, he began to acquire his first wasteland in the town of St Michel in the Condrieu appellation. The first vine was planted in the spring of 1989, as soon as it obtained its patent. The first Condrieu was produced in 1991 and the first 400 bottles were released in the fall of 1992.
While his first vinifications took place in Verlieu, in a cellar behind Yves Cuilleron's, he decided to build his own building in 1996 in St Michel Sur Rhône. It was also on this date that he embarked on the adventure of reviving the Seyssuel vineyard with his colleagues Yves Cuilleron and Pierre Gaillard.
The estate now has more than 40 hectares of vines, supplemented with a few purchases of grapes and produces around 400,000 bottles a year. All the work in the vineyard is done entirely manually and the estate has been in organic conversation on the Ecocert label since August 2019.
The attention paid to the vines and the care taken to preserve these specific terroirs are constant and accompany the cultivation throughout the year. The harvest is decided plot by plot so that each bunch is harvested with perfect maturity.
Full-figured and charmingly floral, Viognier is one of the most important white grapes of the northern Rhône where it is used both to produce single varietal wines and as an important blending grape. Look for great New World examples from California, Oregon, Washington and cooler parts of Australia. Somm Secret—Viognier plays a surprisingly important role in the red wines of Côte Rôtie in the northern Rhône. About 5% Viognier is typically co-fermented with the Syrah in order to stabilize the color, and as an added benefit, add a subtle perfume.
As the source of some of the most vibrant and powerful white wines in France, Condrieu is uniquely situated in one of the northern outposts of the Rhone River. It is the original Viognier appellation with a wine growing history reaching back well over two thousand years. Like most of the wine regions of the Northern Rhone, Condrieu’s vines grow on extremely steep and narrow granite terraces. But what makes the region unique is a topsoil, locally called, “arzelle,” made of decomposed mica. This and a sheltering of the harsh northern winds, make optimal sites to produce opulent and brilliant Viognier. It is a tiny zone with no room for expansion and produces miniscule amounts of wine each year, contributing to its allure.
A fine Condrieu will have aromas and flavors suggestive of ripe stone fruit, lime peel, green almond, ginger, white flowers and toasted nuts. A honeyed smell may mislead you to think the wine will be sweet but the modern style favors totally dry on the palate. Its texture will be full and soft but a touch of mineral will provide great balance.