Winemaker Notes
Blend: Marsanne: 65%, Roussanne: 35%
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2011 Hermitage Chevalier de Sterimberg, a blend of two-thirds Marsanne and one-third Roussanne, was aged in both small barrels and cement eggs. Rose petal, honeysuckle, quince, white flower, white peach and caramelized citrus aromas jump from the glass of this full-bodied, stunningly rich, grand cru Burgundian-styled white. This beauty should age effortlessly for 20-25 years.
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Wine & Spirits
Named for the knight who built the chapel at the top of the Hermitage hill, this 2011 stands out for the cool clarity of its flavors. It smells of chamomile and tastes of stones and herbs, at once light in weight and expansive in reach, with a fine, sandy texture that gives the wine extra purchase on the palate. The roussanne in the blend (30 percent) adds a quiet bass note to the wine, warm and golden. While it drinks well now, it should be more opulent and expressive with another ten to fifteen years.
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.
One of the smallest and most important Syrah regions of northern Rhone, Hermitage is practically one single south-facing slope of crushed granite, thinly covered with varied, yet well-charted soil types. Many climats (well identified parcels) exist within Hermitage and while some smaller producers make single climat Syrahs, some larger ones blend to make one balanced expression of the appellation.
Though the AC regulations allow the addition of up to 15% white grapes to a red Hermitage, in practice it is usually made from Syrah alone. Winemaking is pretty traditional—or you might say historic—with hot fermentations and aging in older barrels of various sizes. The best wines, characterized by deep, dense and sexy flavors of black fruit, cocoa, licorice and tobacco, have massive textures and a solid 10-20 years aging potential.
The region of Hermitage is totally enclosed; the only place it could go really is to literally fall down its own hill into the city of Tain or the Rhone River. Soil erosion is a problem and terraces exist alongside the hill in order to keep the earth in place. Crozes-Hermitage encloses the region entirely to its north and south.
While Hermitage seems synonymous with some of the best Syrah on the planet, actually about one third of the wine produced here comes from white grapes. The full, lush and robust Marsanne or the less common, but almost more charming, Roussanne create wonderful whites in which the best have great potential for aging, like the reds.