In the vineyards of Côte Rôtie
I took a break from tasting yesterday to wander through the vineyards of Côte Rôtie. I was mainly in Côte Brune but also wandered over to Côte Blonde, which are two of the lieu dits in the appellation. The viticulture is quite heroic here, with steep slopes, terraces, and the vines trained sur echalas, on wooden poles. The difference between here and Hermitage is that the poles in Côte Rôtie are joined together into a sort of arch.
