Winemaker Notes
Deep black hue flecked with purple. Notes of graphite, black fruit jelly and laurel, complemented by hints of cedar and fig leaves. Broad on entry, then big on the mid-palate with velvety tannins, it shows nice balance between freshness and power with an aromatic range dominated by spices, nice ripe black fruit.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Coming all from organic grapes and mostly estate vineyards, the 2016 Cornas Temenos was destemmed and brought up all in wood, 20% being new. This deep purple-colored effort offers a modern hint in its crème de cassis, spice, crushed flowers, and violets aromas and flavors, with subtle background oak. Rich, medium to full-bodied, and powerful, it has beautiful density on the palate, sweet tannins, and a great finish. It too will keep for over a decade.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
e 2016 Cornas Temenos is the first vintage of this biodynamic bottling. Sourced from the lieux-dits of Saint-Pierre (near the top of the appellation) and the eastern-facing portion of Reynard, it aged in barrels, 20% of which were new. Pencil shavings frame cassis fruit in this firm but not hard rendition of Cornas. It's medium to full-bodied, with additional notes of blueberries and crushed stone on the silky, dusty finish.
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.”
Distinguished as a fine Syrah producing zone since the 18th century, Cornas, like Cote Rotie, is made up of vineyards covering steep and hard-to-work, granite terraces. As a result the region’s wines fell out of favor during the mid 20th century when the global market was more focused on bulk wines and vineyards that yielded high quantities. It wasn’t until the 1980s when a group of energetic young winemakers reestablished the integrity of these precipitous terraces and also began making an ultra-modern style of Syrah. The new style didn’t need a decade before it was drinkable and could reach the consumer faster than the region’s traditional wines. Given the new quality coming out of the zone, its popularity once again soared and today a good Cornas can easily challenge many of those from Hermitage. Characteristics of Syrah from Cornas include teeth-staining flavors of blackberry jam, plum, pepper, violets, smoked game, charcoal, chalk dust and smoke.