Northern Rhône 2020

Pierre only started bottling this vineyard separately in 2016, and it has since proved it’s a cuvée well-worth following. It comes from a half hectare parcel just north of La Landonne which is home to 80-year-old vines planted by Pierre’s grandfather. He decided to isolate the parcel as he says every year these vines make such a pure and quintessential expression of Côte-Rôtie they deserved their own spotlight. In 2020 it is stridently Syrah, with dark cassis fruit and an aromatic freshness.

Like the Côte Blonde, this is only produced in tiny volumes, and demand is always huge. It has a fabulously expressive nose in its youth, and so much power on the young palate, this will surely go on for decades.

Rostaing’s Condrieu has something of a following. Unlike many others, this is all vinified and aged in stainless steel, rather than oak. It comes from a granitic south-west facing parcel, and the 2020 has a pretty lemon sherbert aroma, with notes of yuzu and kumquat. The palate has a smooth, soft freshness.

This is the emblematic cuvée of the Rostaing domaine, which blends 15 lieux-dits from around Côte-Rôtie. It showcases the Rostaing style brilliantly, with intensity, fruit purity, and decadence. There is a graphite slant to Syrah’s black fruit pallet here. It’s made in a lovely moderate, savoury style, making for a highly appetising wine.

This is one of the most sought-after wines in the Rostaing stable, and only produced in tiny volumes, It displays a decadent nose, with a palate of ample structure and volumes. It will need time, but this has a promising future ahead.

This is quite possibly Côte-Rôtie’s most famous vineyard. In Pierre Rostaing’s hands this 2020 is dense and grippy, with a sophisticated restraint. Powerful and captivating.