2016 Rhônes ten years on

I suffer from SAD every winter, so I am lucky the Wine Illuminati have arranged an array of larks to jolly us all along through the dark months. One of our jollies was a few days ago: 2016 Rhônes ten years on.

2016 Rhônes are considered good but not great. I must admit, the greater the number I try, the more I like them. They are more accessible at this age than great vintages like 2015 but still are of sufficient quality to clearly show the character of their appellations (and lieux-dits in relevant cases).

So that the most tannic wines did not seem hard, we tasted the 2016 Rhône’s in the order: Cornas, Hermitage then ended with Côte-Rôtie. All the wines expressed their tannins quite clearly. Some have enough fruit to conjoin with this structure and improve for a while yet. Most were fun to drink now. We had a smart 2016 Condrieu to start with because its owner, quite understandably, wanted to get rid of it.

This event was held in the private dining room of 10 Greek Street. This was the third time I have dined at the restaurant, and each time the food has been excellent (I review a meal here). Some people felt the chilli heat of a couple of the dishes was a difficult match with the wines. I found the heat levels perfectly acceptable and kept my palate sharp for tasting.

Wherever one dines, in these enlightened times, your wallet will gasp for breath as you pay the bill. However, within this framework, 10 Greek Street is exceptional value. The food is lovely, service excellent and corkage only £20 a bottle. Both for the private dining room and the main restaurant, we will return to this excellent destination many times!

To the wines!

Condrieu Côteaux de Chery 2016, Andre Perret

Nobody smoke! You will ignite my wine! Quite a lot of booze on show here, gives this a sweet, heavy nose. With the residue of Viognier fruit, this is a bit like one of those thick, heavy, nauseating 1980s perfumes, think ‘Opium’, that could knock out a sniffer dog at 100 paces.

The fruit is on its way out, alas, does not have much of the scent I would hope for from a Condrieu. This is a shame as it is clearly ripe enough to have once been quite exuberant – it would have been a wild child.

The ripeness of the wine has knocked out all the acid from the wine, but that is not a problem. The structure of a Condrieu is not necessarily dependent on fruit with acid, there is often astringency from skin-contact to act as a foil for the fruit. Alas, I do not detect enough dry extract to give this balance. It just seems a bit of a splat on the palate.

If you do not mind crapulent Viognier, I can see this would have some… err… purpose. Especially (as someone suggested) with food. For me, the lack of fruit is a bit of a turn off.

I am a bit vexed that someone has talked me into trying to age some Condrieu; I have chosen examples that are/were fresher than this has ever been, thankfully. However, if this is a model of how differently-attractive ten-year-old Viognier is, I am going to have to age it one hell of a lot longer than this in the hope that it turns into something of genuine interest.

Leon, you must be pleased that this was your last bottle.

Cornas ‘Terre Brulées’ 2016, Domaine Lionnet

This is a touch more muted than I would expect from a Lionnet wine, probably a product of my generally having tried riper vintages and this being a ‘classic’ vintage. I do not mean ‘classic’ in the usual pejorative sense (equating to ‘miserable as a Scotsman whose round it is’), because this seems quite attractively elegant.

I get more fruit on that palate, and it has bright acidity that combines with a vivacious tannic structure to give it plenty of energy. It is all in good harmony and, whilst smaller scale than, say, the utterly brilliant 2017, the aura of this wine is one that induces fun.

It has good persistence of flavour, with a hint of earthiness on the finish, but it is all a bit smart for this to be vrai Cornas. When it provides pleasure, as this clearly does, maybe we can excuse it that. It is a good time girl, who is just a bit petite, and we always like people who are willing to tease and tickle.

Give the bargain price I paid for the single bottle I own, I am positively vexed I did not make efforts to buy more. This easily has several years’ worth of joy juice in the tank and, if one is not opening this for a Cornas purist, this would be a great drink for most lovers of Northern Rhône wines. I will drink my bottle with a smile withing 3-4 years.

Cornas ‘Pur Granit’ 2016, Domaine Lionnet

This cuvée was made from young vines in 2016, but it has a good set of aromas – Syrah on granite is a magical combination. Sophisticated fruit intertwines with floral scents; complex but reserved. Everything is well-groomed and not too showy.

There is cool, compelling fruit on the palate supported by a great structure. It is certainly charged energy and the balance is superb. Young vines or not, this is a wonderful terroir on display here that really snatches one’s attention.

Once again, this is not vrai Cornas, it is a bit too smart and sophisticated. Nothing wrong with that, of course, I would say this is a completely winning expression of Syrah that is worth seeking out.

Whereas the Terre Brulée was up for a giggle, this wine wants to discuss philosophy with you. I like both, but today this number has made me sit up and pay attention. I am compelled.

I had only previously tried the 2018 of this cuvée, which was hard as nails made from diamond, but in future I will look for more fun vintages of this as I am sure I will enjoy communing with a slightly more expressive example about what a load of crap Wittgenstein is.

Hell, I will look what vintages are available and hope the fun tokens will stretch to a few bottles next time I am paid! How is that for a recommendation? There is some at a bargain price here. (See first comment about this link.)

Cornas 2016, Guillaume Gilles

Loads of prickly, angular fruit on the nose that is infused with a rich earthiness. This is vrai Cornas, and it is not afraid to shout about it! The energy! The life! The lubricity! Get down to it and damned-well bang away like an armed ICE agent!

I think its serious origins, it is pure lieu-dit Chaillots, really help this display the pure love of Cornas made in a clean but straightforward style. There is no messing about with new oak, destemming or any silliness like that. It is whole bunches in a fermenter, punch them down, then into neutral tanks, wait, bottle it, and share the passion. This is a great piece of land expressing in a manner that will pleasure one immensely.

We get that it is dead sexy, it is also technically spot on. Fruit and structure are in fine harmony. It has all those floral, meaty and peppery flavours one wants in Cornas. There is great acidity. My, it is an exciting, long, mouth-filling experience!

I love Cornas; if you do not when it is as smuttily energetic and phwoar-enabled as this, at least Viagra will mask your inadequacy!

Hermitage 2016, Jean-Louis Chave

Let me start by saying something positive about this wine. Despite the being made from very ripe grapes, M. Chave has happily managed to avoid getting any Brett-taint in this wine. Excellent vineyard and winery hygiene that is to be applauded.

‘Applauded’ if you are not too drunk to aim one hand at another. Everything in this wine takes a backseat to the hot, sweet alcohol, on the nose and palate.

It does have fruit swimming in the alcohol. It has a suggestion of a sweet fruit liqueur to it, not a characteristic I am really looking for in a wine that costs a few hundred pounds.

At least there is quite a lot of tannin there but, my, you really must go looking for it such is the overwhelming sweet heat of it. There is no acidity or energy to it, beyond that chemical energy you can transduce to heat by using a lit match.

There is no harmony to this wine. I do not think it is the wine going through a quaquaversal stage, it is simply made from grapes that were too ripe. Jean-Louis’ father made wines of sculpted refinement, even in hot vintages. He failed to pass on that skill to the next generation.

Côte-Rôtie Viaillère 2016, Pierre Rostaing

I just have to give this a quick sniff to appreciate this is a special piece of land of which a liquid likeness has been expertly reproduced by skilled hands. This is beautiful.

It has medicinal, herbal aromas with meadow flowers, blackberry and cherry fruit. Indeed, that fruit combined with the medicinal characteristics is quite pleasantly reminiscent of the cherry Tunes cough sweets I used to love in the 1980s and 1990s. Yum.

It is ferociously mineral and stony. Flavours and aromas of chipped rock and powdered stone swirl in with the fruit in an involute dance of total loveliness. Add to this classic Côte-Rôtie bacon fat and it is a complex entity of staggering beauty.

There is lively energy to the palate and a sturdy tannic frame for all the fruit, herbs and stone. I get the feeling that this has many more years of evolution to go, something that is not clearly true of the other wines tasted tonight.

Fantastic stuff, I love it! I have five more bottles, and I am in no rush to drink them. What a lucky chap I am!

Côte-Rôtie Viaillère 2016, Clusel-Roch

It is Clusel-Rock, not Clusel-Rosh.

This is lighter and more elegant than the Rostaing, but clearly comes from the same terroir. There is the medicinal, herbal, cherry Tunes fruit, bacon fat and the powerful stone-characteristics.

Whilst this is exceptionally good and would be a show-stealer in most circumstances, following on from the awesome Rostaing Viaillère, this seems a little light and a touch short on complexity.

Trying to get back to objectivity, rather than stray into the absolutely false world of relativism, this is an excellent, complex, ethereal Côte-Rôtie that amply demonstrates that one does not always have to pay very top-dollar for a dazzling experience. Lovely.

If you see some, pick it up. I would wager you have another five years of development on this wine.

Côte-Rôtie ‘Reserve’ 2016, Stéphane Ogier – en magnum

I provided this for Peter to bring and I deeply apologise, Peter, I believed this to be far better than it was. Comes from knowing very little about the producer, not even where this wine fits in his line-up.

It has the silky, varnished character of Syrah that has seen too much time in barriques, some of which have evidently been new.

The fruit is pretty, there is some floral character and there might even be a bit of bacon fat. It is all a bit simple, truth be told.

Moreover, if it were any more heavily manipulated, it would be standing erect from the magnum. This is not what I want from my Côte-Rôtie – it is not a pure expression of terroir.

I will avoid this producer’s wines in the future.

Côte-Rôtie Coeur de Combard 2016, Julien Barge

Popped and poured. What a pity, it took much swirling to reveal this as the true joy it was.

It positively pulsed with smoky minerality, the patch of the Combard lieu-dit it comes from has volcanic soils and it shows on this wine. It gives the telltale Côte-Rôtie bacon fat aroma a smoked edge.

The nose and palate are a kaleidoscope of fresh fruit, nervy, edgy energy and precise, taut structure. Its 12.5% alcohol is perfectly balanced for the diaphanous aspect to the wine.

That is not to say it is dilute. No! Nothing of the sort! It is packed with flavour. It just exists on an otherworldly plane of unrestricted beauty and, let us be honest, an awful lot of pleasure, enjoyment and pure delight.

It is just so drinkable. Such a joy to finish with a wine that, whilst lacking nothing in terms of complexity, structure or harmony, one feels one can sit back and relax with. Wonderful.

If you have long since decided that ‘fun’ to too much like hard work, you would not enjoy this. Everyone else in the entire world would smile a big, broad grin after a sniff and a slurp.