Grapes: Syrah
Region: Rhone, France
Vintage: 2023
Viticulture: Organic
Soils: Pure granitic bedrock on a treacherously steep hillside
Vinification: Destemmed into 225-500 liter oak barrels
Aging: Oak barrel
Fining or Filtering: None
Notes from the Importer: A gentle, jovial, quiet, and extremely humble man, Stéphane Rousset remains a relatively unknown gem in the Northern Rhône. His wines are built on solid craftsmanship and a clear muting of his voice in deference to those of his terroirs. He makes fabulous Saint-Joseph wines, and his wonderful Crozes-Hermitage selections put a rare face on this lesser-understood and appreciated appellation. The glory of the Northern Rhône Valley rests on Côte-Rôtie, Hermitage and Cornas, and while Saint-Joseph can give them a run for their money, Crozes-Hermitage suffers from its sheer size and ability to produce a great volume of wine from nearly every hectare, which ends up diluting how the appellation is perceived. However, there are some Crozes-Hermitage areas and vineyards that standout among the Crozes crowd—vineyards that share the same geological heritage as some of the aforementioned greats. Those special and overlooked areas are home to this story’s protagonist, Stéphane Rousset.
Crozes-Hermitage, the appellation home to the majority of Rousset’s collection of vineyards, is the most diverse terroir in this region under the red grape variety, Syrah. (There’s white too, but a much lower production volume.) In this appellation everything from the acidic metamorphic and igneous rocks all the way to alkaline-rich limestones, wind-blown loess and river alluvium can be found. And all occur on various exposures, some on flat land and some on treacherously steep hills (like Rousset’s Les Picaudières) with every possible soil grain, from clay, silt, sand, gravel, cobbles to boulders! Geologically, Crozes-Hermitage is laid out as if Hermitage had been stretched and pulled in every direction away from the river, toward the north, east and south.
The criticism of Crozes-Hermitage comes in the form of the vastness of its terroir and the often ordinary nature of its Syrah, a grape that manages to deliver a lot of flavor and pleasure even from the lesser terroirs. Many are blends of different parcels and the vast majority are often considered delicious and easy-going, but without any particularly compelling attributes that further define it. They are indeed vins de terroirs, but many of the appellation’s terroirs aren’t nearly as compelling as those from Hermitage, Saint-Joseph, Cornas, and Côtes-Rôtie. But there are exceptions and one needs only to do some research within this vast appellation and its seemingly endless supply of growers.
