When asked about my love for the wines of my hero Jean-Louis Chave, I sometimes paraphrase one of my other heroes, Jancis Robinson, MW. Jancis says that “JL Chave Hermitage is arguably the greatest wine made from Syrah in the world.”
I couldn’t agree more: There’s just no denying that Chave Hermitage is one of the world’s region-, style-, and variety-defining red wines. Chave Hermitage is a staple of every expertly chosen cellar collection I’ve ever seen. It is a necessary benchmark for all wine fanatics who wish to familiarize themselves with the planet’s greatest red wines. SommSelect is offered a small slice of Chave’s ruthlessly fought-over Hermitage Rouge only once or twice a year. There’s never much to go around, but it’s always exhilarating to share these rare gems with a short list of VIP customers. Today’s allocation has never seen a delivery truck or retail shelf since it was released by the Chave family. So, unlike many other “unicorn wines” for sale on the internet or in auction houses across the globe, their provenance is 100% certified, and they are in immaculate condition. We are limiting each recipient of this offer to a maximum of 3 bottles, and be advised: any leftovers are headed straight to the “Chave corner” of my cellar!
In the early 1800s, pioneering vigneron and godfather of modern wine criticism, André Jullien, proclaimed that of all the world’s vineyard sites, three were the undisputed best: Burgundy’s Romanée-Conti; Bordeaux’s Château Lafite; and the Rhône Valley’s Hermitage. On that sacred hill of Hermitage, no family name is more iconic than Chave. Starting in 1481, countless generations of the Chave family have hand-farmed this same hillside in pursuit of one shared goal: a timeless wine that outlives its creator. The accumulation of so many centuries of expertise and tireless labor result in a wine against which all other Syrahs are judged. Chave Hermitage is the standard.
No other bottle so perfectly captures the history and grandeur of Rhône Valley Syrah. We also remind our friends and customers (and ourselves!) that Chave Hermitage is one of the wine world’s most proven appreciating assets. This 2013, a special year for the Northern Rhône that critic Antonio Galloni says “yielded more outstanding wines than ever before,” will only increase in quality and value and should be hidden in the darkest corner of your cellar for another 6-8 years before before you even consider drinking it. I consume my fair share of Chave whites and reds at dinners and events throughout the year and experience tells me that the longer you sit on these bottles, the more expressive and magical they become.
I can’t stress enough that this 2013 is a wine built for extended aging in your cellar. If you must drink it soon, decant the bottle for 24 hours and pour into large Bordeaux stems alongside an appropriately rich and robust dish like pan seared, double-cut pork chops. I’ll admit I already pulled the cork on one of these 2013s recently, and was pleasantly surprised at how approachable it was. It was by no means “in its prime” (that won’t come for another decade, or so), but the powerful minerality, precision, and unbelievably concentrated, pure fruit were evident with every sip. In the glass it has an inky purple core moving to a ruby and magenta rim. The nose explodes with blackberry, black cherry, boysenberry preserve and fresh blueberries before revealing layers of freshly cut violets, oil-cured olives, black pepper, South Asian spices, crushed black stones, and cured meat. The wine feels alive on the palate as one senses every iota of this its impressive body, restrained intensity, and the layers and layers of complex flavor. There’s no denying Chave when you taste it. When it comes to the Northern Rhône, this is as classic as it gets!
