Pierre Gaillard Dans La Neige Rhone White 2015
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2017-
Jeb
Dunnuck
Pierre Gaillard son of a railwayman, yet at 12 years he had already planted his own vines and plowed the vineyards on horseback. He then followed a course studied viticulture and oenology in Burgundy . he started as vineyard manager in the Rhone valley, but soon he feels the need to plant his own vineyards. In 1981 he planted the Clos de Cuminaille then gradually bought and replanted different hills across the northern Rhone Valley. Today, Pierre Gaillard produces Cote Rotie, St Joseph, Condrieu, Cornas, Crozes Hermitage and St Peray on a farm of 25ha. He also extended Faugères, Banyuls and Collioure where the shale slopes remind him of the Côte Rôtie. His wife and children followed in his adventure and now are in family areas managing vineyards…each bringing his jurisdiction to that of the vine to the glass everything happens for the best.
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.