Crozes-Hermitage: my pick of 22 of the best wines from this interesting appellation
Back in late November I visited Crozes-Hermitage in the Northen Rhône, taking some time to visit many of the producers, and also take part in a large tasting of wines. I’m a big fan of the northern Rhône, and I’m happy to report that I found some great wines, many of which were new to me. This is a dynamic region and there’s been a quality revolution. The vineyard area has grown quite a bit, and has now stabilized. Prices for many of these wines are reasonable, which can’t be said for some of the more celebrated appellations in the region.
Here’s my pick of 23 top wines to look out for.
Graham & Julie Bott Crozes-Hermitage Blanc 2023
12.5% alcohol. 80% Roussanne, 20% Marsanne. Floral and expressive with bright pear and apricot fruit. This has a wonderful aromatic lift and then a textured, broad but delicate palate with real presence and charm. Lovely interleaved, mineral-laced flavours here. 94/100
Domaine Delhome Crozes-Hermitage Blanc Loess 2023
13.5% alcohol. Organic. Beautiful harmony here with a saline framing to broad but balanced ripe pear and apricot fruit. Real volume in the mouth with nice depth of fruit, finishing with a fine, mineral, spicy dance on the palate. Impressive stuff. 95/100
Domaine Melody Crozes-Hermitage Blanc 2023
12.5% alcohol. 70% Marsanne, 30% Roussanne, a third each concrete egg, stainless steel and barrel. Organic. Beautiful focus and presence here. There’s some floral detail on the nose with ripe pear and apricot fruit, and then a palate that offers concentration and a layered texture with crystalline citrus and ripe peach fruit. Finishes long. Really impressive. 94/100
M Chapoutier Sicamor Crozes-Hermitage Blanc 2023 France
12.5% alcohol. Sicamor is the ring around the barrel – this is because they select vineyards around Hermitage, with granitic, loess and alluvial soils. This is a new wine just released this year. The aim is to make a more Hermitage style of Crozes-Hermitage. A full yellow colour, this shows wonderful aromatics of toast, nougat, honey and spice, as well as some bright citrus notes. The palate is rich, textural but also well defined with beautiful nut and toast characters weaving their way through bold pear and peach fruit, finishing with some mandarin liveliness and just a hint of salinity. A beautiful wine. 95/100
Les Vins de Vienne Crozes-Hermitage 2023
12.5% alcohol. This is aged in one-third each of concrete, foudres and barrels. Alluvial pebble soils. Wonderfully ripe and aromatic with sweet, alluring red cherry and raspberry fruit with subtle cured meat and pepper. The palate is fresh, crunchy and intense but also with lots of sweet pleasurable fruit and more of that vibrant floral expression of Syrah, finishing with a bit of grip. Such a lovely wine. 95/100
Domaine Melody Friandise Crozes-Hermitage 2023
13% alcohol. From galets roulés in Chassis, aged 10 months is stainless steel and concrete. Organic. Finely aromatic nose with stones and blood mixed with herb-scented red fruits. Detailed and nuanced on the palate with grainy, bloody, slightly meaty notes as well as elegant red berry fruits, finishing peppery and nicely edgy. Such a distinctive wine of real purity and focus. 95/100
Domaine du Chêne Vert Crozes-Hermitage L’Enracinée 2023
13% alcohol. Organic. From a 60 year old parcel. Complex nose with a savoury, spicy, slightly smoky edge to the fruit. Beautiful intensity in the mouth with masses of concentration and structure, with sweet blackberry and black cherry fruit kept honest by some crushed rock and gravel minerality and then some grippy tannins. Finishes with some sour cherry. This is an immense wine with real potential for ageing. 96/100
Yann Chave Crozes-Hermitage 2023
13% alcohol. Organic. Lovely concentration and intensity here. Quite bold, ripe and lush, with notes of roast meat and charcoal as well as sweet cherries and berries, with a bit of peppery detail. Nice flesh, but also some mineral concentration, too. A bold but balanced style that works really well, and finishes with spicy detail. 95/100
Emmanuel Darnaud Crozes-Hermitage Les Trois Chênes 2022
13% alcohol. This is a lovely wine, with a core of sweet red and black cherries, some olive tapenade, and then fine pepper and herb notes. Floral and fine, but with enough structure to balance out the sweet fruit, this is a superbly elegant example of Crozes-Hermitage. 95/100
Domaine Les 4 Vents Crozes-Hermitage Saint Jaimes 2021
13% alcohol. Olive, spice and meat on the nose, leading to a supple, fresh palate with sweet red cherry and wild strawberry fruit as well as some blood and iodine savouriness, and lovely mineral intensity. Such a beautifully nervy and elegant wine with good intensity and focus. 95/100
M Chapoutier Les Varonniers Crozes-Ermitage 2021 France
13% alcohol. This is from Varogne, the steeper part. It’s a cooler vintage. They work with some 1200 litre muids as well as smaller oak. Intense, mineral nose with some crushed rock, some peppery spiciness, savoury gravel character and then some sweet black cherry fruit. The palate has lovely concentration with a savoury, grippy, mineral character under the sweet black fruits. Nice reduction here adding savoury intensity and some extra grip. Finishes firm and spicy. A beautiful wine. 96/100
Paul Jaboulet Aîné Domaine de Thalabert Crozes-Hermitage 2010 France
Organic farming, trellised, cordon (guyot is not allowed in the appellation, but this is under review, and for two years has been allowed for whites). This is very fine with some nice development, offering olives, meat and spices with some notes of blood and iodine, as well as some tannic grip on the finish. There’s a warmth to the fruit, which is all wild strawberries and plums. Lovely wine. 95/100
Domaine Les Alexandrins Les Chaflans Crozes-Hermitage 2022
13.5% alcohol. This is in the corner of the Thalabert vineyard that Jaboulet don’t own. 30% of this plot was planted in 1919, the rest has been replanted more recently. There’s a 12-18 month elevage depending on the vintage, and it’s matured mostly in demi muids, 1-3 years old, with some in a tronconic vat. 30% whole bunch. Lovely concentration here with a core of sweet fruit. Well balanced with notes of mint, olive and sweet cherry and raspberry. There’s good concentration here with ripeness, but also balance and elegance. 94/100
Cave de Tain Cuvée Epure Crozes-Hermitage 2015
15% alcohol. Only made this vintage, a one-off cuvée. Lieu dit La Beaume, an alluvial terrace at high altitude that ripens late, with some red clay. 60 year old vines, yields of 25 hl/ha. Very concentrated wine that was mistaken in the winery for Hermitage, and this has a 25 day maceration. 18 months in a 1 year old barrel. Malolactic in barrel. Small production. Concentrated and intense with a gravelly, spicy edege to the sweet blackberry and cherry fruit with ripe fruit but also firm tannins. It’s dense an salty with massive intensity, and some warmth from the alcohol, but also beautifully defined blackberry and black cherry fruit. Sadly the vines were removed because of the low yields, making this a once off. 94/100
Delas Crozes-Hermitage Le Clos 2020
14% alcohol. ‘The place is very special,’ says Jacques. It’s a single vineyard, on a west-facing terrace looking at the Rhône, fresh and windy, with alluvial soils. This was one of the few places in the area where there was already a vineyard in 1936 when the appellation was established. Perfumed and aromatic with a lovely olive and spice notes alongside sweet black cherry fruit. The palate is bold and tannic, but also has lovely fruit. Some grip here with a peppery bite on the finish. Serious stuff, structured and complex with real beauty and ageing potential and real delicacy and finesse. 96/100
Domaine du Murinais Les Parressots Crozes-Hermitage 2022 France
30% new oak. This is the plot next to the Isere river which cools it down. Vivid, fresh and focused with refined raspberry and cherry fruit, showing elegance and poise but also lovely peppery red fruits. So elegant but still has some oak influence in the background. Lots of potential. 94/100
Domaine Combier Clos des Grives Crozes-Hermitage 2022
8 hectares of Syrah in Pont d’Isère. All oak aged, one-third new. Fresh and refined with some peppery detail, showing bright raspberry and red cherry fruit with nice energy. Subtly spicy, with a hint of meat, and nice direct structure and acidity. Lovely focus and brightness with stony mineral characters weaving in with the fruit. Very refined and direct, with good ageing potential. 95/100
Domaine Pradelle Evasion Crozes-Hermitage Homage à Jean Pradelle 2022
Sold only at cellar door, for €19, this is from a single plot and is aged for 12 months in used barrels. Lovely intensity here with bold black cherry and blackberry fruit with good tannic structure. Mineral and brooding with lovely savoury energy and some iodine and pepper on the finish. 94/100
Domaine Alain Graillot La Guiraude Crozes-Hermitage Rouge 2022
Perfumed aromatics here with lavender, floral black cherries and some cured meat. The palate has freshness, firm tannins and sleek black fruits, but also some stern savoury elements with herbs, iodine and gravel. There’s freshness and a lot of latent energy here: this is for cellaring, and it will be quite beautiful in time. 96/100
Domaine des Hauts Châssis ‘Les Chassis’ Crozes-Hemitage 2022
Red clay soils, from two plots, 100 year old vines. Brooding and dark with sweet blackberry and black cherry fruit. Refined but has some brooding olive and meat savouriness. The palate has nice concentration and density with a bit of grip, showing minerals and spice with good intensity. This has polish, texture and concentration, but also grip. 95/100
Domaine Belle Cuvée Louis Belle Crozes-Hermitage 2022
From the kaolin soils of Larnage, and gobelet vines that have been trellised. Rich, dense and spice laden with sweet black fruits and some earth and a bit of grip. Roast meat and even some coffee notes, with a hint of oak (25% new). 94/100
Laurent Fayolle Crozes-Hermitage Clos les Cornirets 2022
This is from a granite hillside, facing south/southwest. The granite brings freshness but the exposure some warmth. Destemmed, vinified in concrete and aged in barrel, about 10% new. Fine spices on the nose with floral red cherry fruit and a hint of cinnamon, even. The palate is concentrated and taut, with high acidity and firm tannins, sitting under vital red cherry and raspberry fruit. Tightwound with some complex pepper and dried herb notes in the mix as well as bold fruit. This has lots of potential for development. 95/100
