Wine 101 - Northern Rhone Wines

The Great Syrah of France

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Wine 101 - Northern Rhone Wines Unlike the wines of the Southern Rhône, the red wines of the north tend to be 100% Syrah, and the only other addition in most cases happens to be a small addition of white grapes! This is a less forgiving region than the softer contours of the south allow for. Here the hills are where the action is, producing wines that have a purity and elegance, yet express the extreme nature of their vineyards.

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Tags: slideshow, Wine 101, Rhone, France, Wine Education, Gregory Dal Piaz

Comments

dmcker

Hand of Snooth

125836 7,663

Another very useful, reference-level piece, Greg. The only thing that's missing is tasting notes on some representative wines! Unfortunately the Château-Grillet slide is the the only one where you come close to that.
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One thing, though. I'd beg to differ with your remark that Cote Rotie is the most famous district in the region. Historically Hermitage is a lot better known, and tended to represent the entire Rhone in many peoples' minds, particularly in the period when Chateauneuf du Pape was in serious decline. Why else would you have 'Hermitage' reds made for so many years in far flung countries of the New World? Never any Cote Roties (or Chateauneufs)... ;-)

A final question. Seems like most all the recent articles are slide shows. They are sexier and a draw to traffic when posted in the right place on the site. But are they really the best format for all types of content?

Oct 19, 2010 at 6:26 PM
lakatosc

359355 2

I am really enjoying these breakdowns of appellations - which can be a bit confusing otherwise - by slide show. Keep up the good work! :-)

Oct 19, 2010 at 11:33 PM
drunkinits-
youth

616319 2

Except for Chave, a northern producer most famous for his Hermitage, his Mon Coeur CDR is predominantly Grenache.

Oct 20, 2010 at 5:54 AM
paradisibe-
e

204211 12

Loving both the region break-downs and the slide-shows, Greg! Quick, informative, and to the point - thank you.

Oct 20, 2010 at 10:50 AM
elosang

621030 1

As wine-lover: brilliant
As cartographer: very poor map

Oct 25, 2010 at 1:41 PM