Côte-Rôtie La Landonne Jean-Michel Gerin 2020

Lot presentation

Côte-Rôtie La Landonne Jean-Michel Gerin 2020

The wine

The vineyard of Saint-Joseph and its "vin de Mauves" was famous in the 19th century until the tsar empire. Two sites were already legendary: the hillside of Saint-Epine and the hillside of Saint-Joseph, the current location of a plot belonging to Maison Chapoutier."Les Granits" is a 100% Syrah cuvée, made from the oldest stock of this variety, on poor and stony granite soils. The grapes are harvested by hand at very high maturity and then ferment slowly in small concrete vats. The wine is then aged in barrels for 14 to 18 months, in new containers or those which have been used for one or two wines. The Maison will only use free run wine during the process. With its beautiful deep garnet colour, Les Granits is refined and elegant, marked by candied notes (ripe black fruit) and roasting. On the palate, smoky and peppery notes emerge with aromas of liquorice on the finish. This wine is characterised by very good balance, taut tannins and it lingers remarkably well.

The Gerin family has lived in Ampuis in the heart of the Côte-Rôtie for six generations. Jean-Michel Gerin established his own vineyards in 1983 with plots in the Côte-Rôtie and Condrieu appellations and three very fine parcels in La Landonne, Les Grandes Places and La Viallière. The estate's 18 hectares are also spread between the Saint-Joseph AOC and IGP Collines Rhodaniennes as well as Vin de France.
His vines are tended the traditional way, by hand and without the use of chemical fertilisers or herbicides and have been certified organic since 2023. Extraction is a priority throughout the vinification process and the wines are aged in low-capacity oak barrels for two years (for the Côte-Rôtie). Jean-Michel's wines are concentrated and impressively velvety. Along with his wife, Monique, he represents the new wave of Côte-Rôtie producers even though his considerable experience gives his wines plenty of depth and finesse. His children, Michaël and Alexis, have now taken over the estate. Its red wines are elegant and powerful and the white wines are known for their freshness and intense aromas.