Northern Rhone Whites

 

France's northern Rhone Valley has a well deserved reputation for red wine.  The litany of Syrah based wines, like Cote Rotie, Hermitage, St. Joseph, is legendary. 

Wine grapes were growing in the Rhone valley as far back as before the spread of Christianity. Unearthed amphorae from the 1st century CE, show that wine was carried up river to Roman legions, and has been part of local culture ever since.  

Syrah, the only red grape allowed in the Northern Rhone, hangs precariously on vines rooted in the steep slopes along the Rhone river.  For many advocates of Syrah there is no better expression of the grape than the wine that comes from the northern Rhone.    

 Held in less esteem by the buying public are Rhone white wines, notably Marsanne, Roussanne and Viognier.  Wine made from these three distinct varieties do not taste like Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc, and that may be why Rhone whites never scaled the popular heights of either of those white wines - except, maybe Viognier.  

Viognier

California wine in the late 1990s went through a mini-revolution when Viognier burst on the scene.  Long known in the northern Rhone as the aromatic grape of Condrieu, Viognier made a splash with wine drinkers looking for something new and different. 

Chàteau-Grillet, unique in its expression of Viognier, is one of few appellations owned by a single family and Grillet is one of France's smallest appellations, consisting of less than 10 acres.

The popularity of Viognier spread south in France to Languedoc and overseas to California, Virginia, Texas, South Africa and Australia.  South Australia's Yalumba became a specialist with a string of stylish Viogniers, while other Aussie wineries discovered Viognier was good blended with Shiraz. 

The largest planting of Viognier is in Languedoc, with California in second place.  The warm growing conditions in California is ideal for warmth loving Viognier.  The variety's floral and stone fruit aromas are maximized in that environment.

Viognier's heady aromatics and flavor of ripe peaches and apricots may strike a note of familiarity to lovers of  Albarino, the seafood friendly white wine from Spain's Galicia region.  

 And there is more than passing interest for Viognier in Virginia, New York, Oregon and British Columbia.

Marsanne, a northern Rhone original, is thought to have given birth to Roussanne, its natural blending partner.  The fact that Marsanne is an easier grape to grow than Roussanne has meant that Roussanne vines now out number Marsanne.  It's an economic decision since the two grapes are compatible.  

Limited plantings of Marsanne are found in the southern France regions of Languedoc and Roussillon.  Marsanne is the majority grape in such classic northern Rhone white wines as St. Joseph, Hermitage and Crozes-Hermitage.  

 

                                             

Peachy flavors define young Marsanne.  With age, the transition is to honeysuckle over ripe apricots and peaches.  Be patient with Marsanne, because it sometimes goes through a dumb period where you wonder if there's a future for the wine. 

Roussanne, the aromatic blending partner with Marsanne, is slowly disappearing in the vineyards of the northern Rhone.  It still is an authorized grape in Chateauneuf-du-Pape, while Marsanne is not.  

The thing that eventually dropped Roussanne from favor was a difficulty in the vineyard.  Growers have a hard time getting it ripe and developing full flavors. Even new clones haven't helped, thus the conversion from Roussanne to Marsanne in many vineyards, except for prominent producers like Paul Jaboulet and the Perrin family.

Fruit wine makers say that pear is a challenging fruit for making a fruit wine.  Pear's  delicate flavors do not transfer easily from fruit to wine.  But pear is the primary descriptor of Roussanne.  When mature, Roussanne becomes slightly herbal and nutty.  It is this aged character that gives northern Rhone white wines refinement.  

Pricing Northern Rhone Whites 

Condrieu: prices for this northern Rhone white vary from $40 to $60.  Prices for Chateau-Grillet vary widely from $150 to $350.  Limited quantities of this desirable, expensive French Viognier make it to this country, so you have to shop around. Most U.S Viognier costs between $20 and $40. 

Make northern Rhone wines your next white wine purchase.

 

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