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Domaine Pichat, “Côtes de Verenay” Syrah

Rhône Valley, France 2016 (750mL)
$31.00
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Domaine Pichat, “Côtes de Verenay” Syrah

Here’s a question: Why would three of the most powerful, wealthy, land-rich families in the Northern Rhône Valley—Guigal, Chapoutier, and Perrin—pay top dollar for Syrah grapes from a tiny, off-the-beaten-path farmstead? The answer is truly epic, best-of-the-best terroir. Large négociants often use their high-priced Côte-Rôtie and Hermitage cuvées as “loss leaders” to direct attention and credibility toward the less-expensive Côtes du Rhône wines that drive their bottom lines. So, almost regardless of the cost, their elite cuvées need to be considered among the best wines in the region, and they have to deliver major critical praise every year. Of course, the only way to guarantee excellence is to buy the finest fruit for sale in the region.


Historically, in Côte-Rôtie, that meant buying fruit from the Pichat family’s microscopic 2.5-hectare farm. This is some of the most authentic Syrah that $35 can buy, but here’s the real kicker: My colleagues and I recently tasted through Pichat’s lineup of $70- and $90-per-bottle Côte-Rôties yet we unanimously agreed that the most delicious and memorable red was today’s IGP-level “Côtes de Verenay.” Quite frankly, it blew the other wines off the tasting table! I urge you to look past this bottle’s ordinary label and less recognized appellation because it is a monument to a truly elite terroir and unbeatable value!


In the grand scheme of Northern Rhône families, Domaine Pichat is anything but grand. Throughout the generations, the Pichats have farmed their small plot in Côte-Rôtie. As renown for their painstakingly stewarded Syrah fruit increased throughout the region, prices crept upward, and soon the family was supplying a who’s who of top names in Côte-Rôtie. Starting in the year 2000, the family also began producing a small amount of wine under its own label, and flattery from critics in the US and Europe followed close behind. Inspired by the quick success, the family began acquiring vines in more of Côte-Rôtie’s top cru vineyards. Today the property is still quite small—only five hectares—and some fruit still goes to those big houses, but Domaine Pichat has become a veritable goldmine of ‘brand-name’ Côte-Rôtie vineyards (lieu-dits): “Champon,” “Plomb,” “Fongeant,” “Gerine,” and “Grandes Places.”



Today’s bottling is labeled with the “Collines Rhodaniennes” IGP, a geographic indication which covers an area between Lyon and Montélimar—the AOCs Côte-Rôtie, Hermitage, and Saint Joseph all fall within this larger area. It’d be tempting to call “Côte de Verenay” a baby Côte-Rôtie, given its vineyard origins, but it’s no baby: There’s a definitive sense of class and grandeur that belies the shockingly low price.



The 2016 Domaine Pichat Syrah “Cotes de Verenay” cascades into the glass with deep magenta and crimson tones. From the first glance and scent, there is no mistaking this for anything other than exceptional Northern Rhône Syrah. Deep black cherry, mulberry, and blackcurrant fruit form the foundation of this wine’s character—so much so that I had to keep checking the label to convince myself that this bottle was, in fact, the family’s least expensive wine! Of course, as with any great Northern Rhône red, the story is not entirely about fruit. With just a small amount of air, the schistous and granite-rich soil aromatics, the deep olive and grilled meat notes, and the coffee bean details all come into clearer relief. This is a supremely sexy and opulent wine. I encourage you to decant for 30 minutes prior to savoring slowly in large Bordeaux stems at 60 degrees. It’s a wine for all friends and all occasions—deep, and soil-driven enough for the nerds, but forward and instantly gratifying in a way that will surely satisfy New World wine enthusiasts. Cheers!
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Country
France
Region
Rhône Valley
Sub-Region
FranceIGP Collines Rhodaniennes
Soil
Sand, Granite
Farming
Sustainable
Blend
Syrah
Alcohol
13.0
OAK
Neutral French Barrels
TEMP.
60
Glassware
Bordeaux Stem
Drinking
Now-2025
Decanting
30 Minutes
Pairing
Texas-Style Smoked Brisket

France

Bourgogne

Beaujolais

Enjoying the greatest wines of Beaujolais starts, as it usually does, with the lay of the land. In Beaujolais, 10 localities have been given their own AOC (Appellation of Controlled Origin) designation. They are: Saint Amour; Juliénas; Chénas; Moulin-à Vent; Fleurie; Chiroubles; Morgon; Régnié; Côte de Brouilly; and Brouilly.

Southwestern France

Bordeaux

Bordeaux surrounds two rivers, the Dordogne and Garonne, which intersect north of the city of Bordeaux to form the Gironde Estuary, which empties into the Atlantic Ocean. The region is at the 45th parallel (California’s Napa Valley is at the38th), with a mild, Atlantic-influenced climate enabling the maturation of late-ripening varieties.

Central France

Loire Valley

The Loire is France’s longest river (634 miles), originating in the southerly Cévennes Mountains, flowing north towards Paris, then curving westward and emptying into the Atlantic Ocean near Nantes. The Loire and its tributaries cover a huge swath of central France, with most of the wine appellations on an east-west stretch at47 degrees north (the same latitude as Burgundy).

Northeastern France

Alsace

Alsace, in Northeastern France, is one of the most geologically diverse wine regions in the world, with vineyards running from the foothills of theVosges Mountains down to the Rhine River Valley below.

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