Winemaker Notes
Pretty color with shiny reflections. Each grape variety is vinified separately in demi-muids and concrete vats allowing this wine to reveal a superb balance between the structure of Marsanne and the tension of Roussanne. On the nose, it offers a magnificent aromatic bouquet of smoky notes and toasted bread subtly mixed with aromas of white-flesh fruit and white flowers typical of these northern grape varieties. The mouth is silky, round with a perfectly balanced bitterness, a touch of acidity and minerality.
This wine is perfect as an aperitif served with a prawn platter. It also pairs well with grilled fish and works a charm with white meat, especially poultry.
Blend: 60% Marsanne, 40% Roussanne
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
While delivering dried green herb and heather flavors that pierce subtle apricot and melon notes, this white is all about the mineral drive. Salty and steely, with a chiseled feel through the drawn-out, complex finish, which reveals smoke and toasted macadamia accents.
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.
Crozes-Hermitage is Northern Rhone’s largest appellation, surrounding the steep granite faces of Hermitage to its north and south. Here the rolling vineyards are less extreme and its soils, rich in clay-limestone and alluvial matter, produce Syrahs that range from fruity and charming to lush and seductive. The Syrahs of Crozes-Hermitage have more mass than those from St. Joseph but are less intense than those from Hermitage. While many are intended for early consumption, some of the best Syrahs from Crozes-Hermitage will age beautifully for 5-10 years.
Up to 15% of white grapes may theoretically be added to red Crozes at the time of fermentation but whether this is done or not depends on the decision of the winemaker. The best Crozes-Hermitage Syrahs will be fleshy with black fruit (currant, blackberry and black cherry) and bay leaf qualities, notes of tar and stone, and a well-concentrated finish of smooth tannins.
About a tenth of the wine produced in Crozes-Hermitage is white, primarily composed of Marsanne supplemented by smaller amounts of Roussanne.