Some of the most famous Northern Rhône wines hail from Hermitage. The imposing hill, towering above the village of Tain, earned its name back in the 13th century when an injured knight returned from the Crusades and the Queen gave him permission to build a small home, or Hermitage, for his recovery at the top of the hill. The knight lived in seclusion there as a hermit for many years and the name lived on. In the last 30 years, prices for Hermitage have skyrocketed and the lesser-known Crozes-Hermitage appellation has filled the vacuum in the market and garnered the opportunity to shine due to the fact that many simply outperform for their price point. There are a few serious producers in Crozes whose wines always seem to top my list; one producer that always finds its way on that list is Domaine Gilles Robin.

 

Domaine Gilles Robin has roots that reach back to 1920 when Louis Pasquion’s grandfather bought a few acres out of his passion for the vine and a desire to make wine for personal consumption. Located in Mercurol about five minutes east of the Tain l’Hermitage, the estate is currently run by Gilles Robin, who is passionate about the Syrah varietal above all others and had the following to say, The art of blending Syrah styles sublimate the wines from our terroirs. Syrah grapes have an extraordinary capacity of adaptation and thus are able to express themselves in different ways. To each terroir a revelation. Today the Domaine owns 40 acres of vines all of which are farmed manually using organic composts. Their vision is to respect the environment and allow the vines to thrive without the use of chemicals. My go-to wine from this estate is the Cuvée Papillon, which comes from relatively younger vines, at around twenty years of age, that will soon be included in their top old vine bottling. The fruit for this wine is completely destemmed after harvest then fermented and aged in stainless steel, which preserves the beautiful character of the Syrah varietal. The result is a wine that always leaves me stunned by its purity and expression of place.