If you love the Syrah grape, as we do, then of course your first stop is the Northern Rhône Valley of France. And while we’d all love to be able to drink the greats of Côte-Rôtie and Hermitage whenever we’d like,most wine budgets do not allow for such extravagance. Even Saint-Joseph is starting to get expensive, which leaves Crozes Hermitage as the number-one destination for value in this part of the world. Luckily, Crozes-Hermitage has been (over) delivering the goods lately, as evidenced by this gorgeous bottling from Domaine Mucyn. It only took a few seconds after sipping this 2020 to lock in an order—it is everything one could ask for in a Northern Rhône Syrah, and more.
Hélène and Jean-Pierre Mucyn farm an“archipelago” of choice vineyards (about 14 hectares) across several Northern Rhône appellations: Saint-Joseph, Crozes-Hermitage, and Cornas. The Crozes-Hermitage “Les Entrecoeurs” is sourced from 40+-year-old vines rooted in “alluvial” soils of sandy clay and pebbly limestone gravel that is rich in silica.
The hand-harvested grapes (100% Syrah) are completely destemmed and are “cold soaked” for a brief period before they are crushed and fermentation is initiated. Alcoholic fermentation proceeds over the next three weeks, with daily manual “punch-downs” of the cap of solids. The finished wine is aged only in stainless steel, to accentuate the purity of the fruit and the profound minerality of the wine.
Since 2001, Hélène (the viticulturist) and Jean-Pierre (the winemaker) Mucyn have been crafting powerful, elegant Syrahs from vineyards in both Crozes-Hermitage and Saint-Joseph. The couple first met in a viticulture and enology class in Beaune; years later, they bought and renovated an 18th-century riverside boat lodge in Gervans, which they transformed into their winery. A cellar beneath the building provides ideal temperature and humidity for the vinification of white wines, while reds are housed in an old restored barn with thick granite walls for optimal insulation.
Shining a textbook Syrah ruby-black-magenta in the glass, the wine’s aromas are driven by wild black fruits of blackberry, currants, cherry and plum with secondary notes of wild flowers, fresh lavender, wet soil, olive and a touch of black pepper. These carry over to the lush, medium-bodied palate, which has some firm tannins but nothing aggressive: It’s young and primary and very accessible, delicious to drink now and over the next few years. Decant it about 30 minutes before service in Bordeaux stems alongside something very Syrah-friendly like lamb chops.
