Chene Bleu Aliot 2015
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A beautiful golden yellow, bright and clear. Rich and complex aromas of lemongrass, toasted almonds and sweet, buttery brioche. The palate is fresh and elegant with a hints of acidity, light minerality and touches of lime. Full-bodied with vanilla notes. Intense and long finish.
Blend: 65% Roussanne, 30% Grenache Blanc, 5% Marsanne
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Wine Spectator
Really lovely and alluring, with buttered brioche, creamed yellow apple, verbena and melon notes swirling around together. A salted butter detail drapes the finish, which has underlying zip and a floral edge for balance. Roussanne, Grenache Blanc, Marsanne and Viognier. Drink now through 2022.
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2018-
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Jeb
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Blessed with a confluence of natural factors, Chêne Bleu has the benefit of an exceptional location, multifaceted geology, and a southern Rhone climate with soils more typical of the northern Rhone. The remarkable 340-acre estate had functioned as a working vineyard since the Middle Ages but was left untended for the majority of the 20th century, leaving the buildings in ruins. Xavier and Nicole Rolet purchased the property in 1993, enchanted by the secluded location of the vineyard and the history of the ancient monastery on site that had been built nearly 1,000 years ago. A decade of meticulous work was required to restore the priory and nurture the neglected vineyards back to biodynamic health. With time, each small improvement in the vineyard was seen to be rewarded ten-fold with qualitative results. The high-altitude vineyards benefit from warm daytime sun and cool nights allowing a longer, gradual ripening season. Grapes are picked up to five weeks later than the surrounding valley floor. The resulting wines embody the aromas and flavor of southern Rhone, together with the finesse and elegance of northern Rhone and the aging potential of the region’s finest AOCs.
Full-bodied and flavorful, white Rhône blends originate from France’s Rhône Valley. Today these blends are also becoming popular in other regions. Typically some combination of Grenache Blanc, Marsanne, Roussanne and Viognier form the basis of a white Rhône blend with varying degrees of flexibility depending on the exact appellation. Somm Secret—In the Northern Rhône, blends of Marsanne and Roussanne are common but the south retains more variety. Marsanne, Roussanne as well as Bourboulenc, Clairette, Picpoul and Ugni Blanc are typical.
A long and narrow valley producing flavorful red, white, and rosé wines, the Rhône is bisected by the river of the same name and split into two distinct sub-regions—north and south. While a handful of grape varieties span the entire length of the Rhône valley, there are significant differences between the two zones in climate and geography as well as the style and quantity of Rhône wines produced. The Northern Rhône, with its continental climate and steep hillside vineyards, is responsible for a mere 5% or less of the greater region’s total output. The Southern Rhône has a much more Mediterranean climate, the aggressive, chilly Mistral wind and plentiful fragrant wild herbs known collectively as ‘garrigue.’
In the Northern Rhône, the only permitted red variety is Syrah, which in the appellations of St.-Joseph, Crozes-Hermitage, Hermitage, Cornas and Côte-Rôtie, it produces velvety black-fruit driven, savory, peppery red wines often with telltale notes of olive, game and smoke. Full-bodied, perfumed whites are made from Viognier in Condrieu and Château-Grillet, while elsewhere only Marsanne and Roussanne are used, with the former providing body and texture and the latter lending nervy acidity. The wines of the Southern Rhône are typically blends, with the reds often based on Grenache and balanced by Syrah, Mourvèdre, and an assortment of other varieties. All three northern white varieties are used here, as well as Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Bourbelenc and more. The best known sub-regions of the Southern Rhône are the reliable, wallet-friendly Côtes du Rhône and the esteemed Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Others include Gigondas, Vacqueyras and the rosé-only appellation Tavel.