In three decades, Bénetière has transitioned from protégé to cult legend, but it hasn’t come easy. His few acres, excluding a small parcel in La Turque (made famous by E. Guigal’s $400+ bottling), were devoid of vines when he first purchased them. So, in either a raving mad or resolutely passionate attempt, he began farming the precipitous hillsides of Côte-Rôtie from scratch. Pierre recalls his past: “My friends said it was an impossible task, to get land cleared and planted for vines, then to make the wine...that got me going.” As a result, he didn’t turn a profit for roughly 15 years while his wife worked to help them stay afloat. Pierre is a pure example of someone who is driven by love of vine and his wines personify that. 

“Cordeloux” comes from a micro-parcel named “Corps de Loup” in the southern part of Côte-Rôtie. As mentioned, these steep terraces were carved out and subsequently planted by Pierre decades ago. Soils here are largely granite with schist and sand. Pierre’s philosophy for viticulture is simple: “The less I go in the vineyard, the better for me.” He has practiced organic farming for over 15 years now and has always harvested by hand. In the winery, grapes are left on their stems—another reason die-hard Syrah fanatics love him—and fermentation is triggered with natural yeasts. Pierre makes two Côte-Rôtie wines, the other called “Dolium,” which is a two-barrel production from the legendary “La Turque” vineyard in Côte Brune; a small portion of those grapes typically find their way into “Cordeloux.” The wine ages in mostly used French oak (some are old Liger-Belair Burgundy barrels that previously held Grand Cru “La Romanée”) for approximately 20 months. To further cement his traditional style, Pierre adds 5-6% Viognier into the final blend for enhanced aromatics. The wine is bottled without fining or filtering. 

NOTE: The 2016 (along with his ’15 and ’14) is labeled “Vin de France” because of Pierre's deadlock with the Côte-Rôtie AOP. His indifference for administrative tasks/wine politics is just one more reason why we love him.