Great Côte-Rôtie tastes and feels like it was chiseled from stone. And that’s because it is! The 300-ish hectares of Côte-Rôtie vineyards cling to terraced hillsides of granite and schist, producing the most exquisitely perfumed examples of Syrah in the world.
Today’s wine from Xavier Gérard is a Côte-Rôtie of genuine greatness, yet it is still priced far below blue chips from the likes of Jamet and Guigal. Having now offered several vintages of Gérard’s Côte-Rôtie, which all sold out in record time, I’m shocked not only that we were able to get enough to offer today, but that today’s 2016 still comes in at under $70. How it has not yet jumped into the medium triple-digits defies belief, given how sought-after Gérard’s wines have become. It’s only been a short time since they debuted in the US market—not just his masterful Côte-Rôtie but some intricately layered Viogniers from Condrieu—but he has become one of the young “it” producers in the Northern Rhône. Today’s 2016 practically vibrates with energy and leaves no doubt that it will age 20, 30 years with ease. I wouldn’t hesitate to rank it among the most under-valued investments in wine right now, and given its scarcity, its price is certain to go up in the future. If you love Northern Rhône Syrah, be sure to take all six bottles available to you today: You will be very happy and proud to have them in your cellar.
My colleague Mark Osburn and I enjoyed a memorable visit with Xavier Gérard earlier this year; he is a young guy farming about three hectares of Côte-Rôtie vines by hand (as if there were any other way) and producing wines in the most traditional manner possible. He took over the operation from his parents, from whom he learned his craft, and as we’ve noted in previous offers, he definitely looks the part: He’s built like a football player, no doubt thanks to the dizzyingly steep inclines of his vineyards and the back-breaking labor involved in tending them. In his small cellar, fermentations are initiated by ambient yeasts and varying percentages of whole grape clusters are left in the must. His Côte-Rôtie is aged in large, used demi-muid barrels before bottling, leaving nary a trace of toastiness or vanilla in the finished product. This is a soulful, high-toned Syrah that perfectly captures what Côte-Rôtie is all about.
Given the wine’s premium vineyard sources, this should come as no surprise. The majority of the blend (about 65%) comes from a lieu-dit (named site) called “Mollard,” with the remainder of the fruit hailing from the “Font-Jean,” “Viallière,” and “La Landonne” vineyards. The latter, of course, is one of the most famous (and steepest) sites in the darker-soiled “Côte Brune,” singled out on top-dollar bottlings from Guigal and Delas, among others.
Given that it followed the blockbuster 2015 vintage, 2016 was bound to be less hyped. But to sleep on ’16 would be a huge mistake, as any of the top critics will be quick to tell you. There’s incredible elegance, balance, and detail in the ’16s, and likely more longevity as a result. As I noted above, Gérard’s 2016 will reward patience, but neither is it forbidding now—the tannins are firm, for sure, but very fine-grained rather than ragged. In the glass, the wine is a characteristically dark ruby-black with hints of purple at the rim, with highly complex aromas of blackberries, boysenberries, kirsch liqueur, cocoa powder, black olives, wet violets, roasted meat, and cracked black pepper. It is medium-bodied and very lithe and perfumed at the moment, with lots of spice-cake and smoke on the finish, and as this wine puts on wine over time it promises to be a thick, muscular, powerful Syrah experience. Not heavy: powerful.
If you do what we did and decant a bottle a good two hours before serving it, this wine will give you enough black-fruited, violet-scented, smoky/mineral Syrah character to make you swoon right now. But at this point in the wine’s life, it’s not yet ready to reveal its whole self to you. In 10-15 years’ time, and for many years thereafter, a much more detailed picture will emerge. As we tasted this 2016 we could see that all the structural elements are there, ready to burst through the dam of tannin that at present has the wine feeling very sinewy and lively, like a young colt. This is a signature of the best Northern Rhône Syrahs, with this one poised to go 20+ years. If you can’t wait to get a taste, decant a bottle two hours prior and serve it in large Burgundy stems at 60-65 degrees. Pair it with a well-charred steak or some lamb chops and some roasted potatoes seasoned with rosemary, garlic, and black pepper. “Lip-smacking” doesn’t even begin to describe it. Enjoy!
