Northern Rhone Wines
Northern Rhone
While the Northern Rhône produces only about 5% of all wine coming out of the Rhône Valley, the quality of these bottles is not to be underestimated. The terroir in this region is heavenly for growing Syrah, Viognier, Marsanne or Rousanne – the only permitted grapes in the AOC. Picture this – the Rhône flows through the valley like an azure thread piercing the landscape, a reflection of the dreamy skies hovering above the vineyards, ready to produce rainfall at a moment’s notice. The rocky soil of the steep, almost surreal hillsides provides a bountiful feast for the grapevine roots.The flavors and texture of Northern Rhône wines tell you everything you need to know as soon as your lips touch the elixir, like a whisper in the vigorous valley winds. The wine caresses your tongue like silk, and aromatic hints of pepper, red fruits, bacon fat, green olive, and earthy mineral can arouse your tastebuds within a heartbeat. These wines are rich, often acidic, refreshing, and can be the centerpiece of any gathering or romantic meetup.
No matter what your wine preferences are, the Northern Rhône has a bottle or two that will rock your world. Follow us on this journey, as we explore only the finest wines to come out of this region, ones that will make your collection shine with a new glamour and that you can savor privately, or with friends, and recognize the masterful craftsmanship that went into these works of art. No one is ever left disappointed after a proverbial visit to the Northern Rhône.
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1964 Paul Aine Jaboulet Hermitage La Chapelle97VMFirst, a magnum of 1964 Hermitage La Chapelle from Paul Jaboulet Aîné. Lucid in hue, it sports modest bricking on the rim. Its initial tightness on the nose soon disap..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $2,245.00 -
1985 Paul Aine Jaboulet Hermitage La Chapelle96JSHints of amber to the brick-red center color. It shows lots of saffron, mushroom, forest floor, pastrami and other dried meats. Full body with incredible silky tannins and a depth ..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $350.00 -
1989 Chapoutier Hermitage Le Pavillon100RPThe 1989 Le Pavilion is a prodigious wine. Made from yields of 14 hectoliters per hectare, this parcel of old vines (averaging 70-80 years of age) has produced an opaque black/purp..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $750.00 -
1990 Chave Hermitage99JDThe 1990 Hermitage is fully mature yet holding beautifully. Perfumed notes of sweet cassis and blackberry fruits, rose hips, smoked meats, and exotic spices all flow to a full-bodi..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $1,895.00 -
1990 Paul Aine Jaboulet Hermitage La Chapelle100DECJaboulet's Hermitage La Chapelle 1961, 1978 and 1990 are considered to be among the greatest wines ever made in the Rhône Valley. The 1990 was sourced from Les Bessards, Le M..." Learn MoreAs low as $1,230.00 -
1995 Chapoutier Hermitage Le Pavillon100RPStill a youngster, the blockbuster 1995 Ermitage le Pavillon is a quintessential Hermitage in every way. Full-bodied, powerful, thick and unctuous, with tons of smoky, black, black..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $2,999.00 -
1995 Chave Hermitage Cathelin98JDThe 1995 Hermitage Cuvee Cathelin is another magical wine from this family estate that’s drinking brilliantly today. Its vivid ruby, semi-opaque color (classic mature Hermita..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $9,095.00 -
1996 Chapoutier Cote Rotie ''La Mordoree''91RPI was less impressed with the 1996 Cote Rotie La Mordoree from bottle than I was from cask. Michel Chapoutier still believes it is one of the finest examples he has produced, but a..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $185.00 -
1997 Chave Hermitage (White)99DECTasted with Jean-Louis Chave in his cellars in Mauves. This vintage included a proportion of botrytised grapes, a growing rarity these days on Hermitage due to the increasingly hot..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $460.00 -
1998 Chave Hermitage Cathelin Cuvee98+VMReticent, minerally nose hints at great sweetness and ripeness; notes of blackberry and tar emerge with aeration. Round, rich and layered in the mouth; still quite closed but the w..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $10,325.00 -
1998 Penfolds Grange Hermitage98+RPA wine that flirts with perfection, and should rival the 1986 as one of the legendary Granges produced, the 1998 has one of the highest alcohol contents (nearly 15%) as well as one..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $675.00 -
1999 Guigal Cote Rotie La Turque100RPThe 1999 Cote Rotie La Turque reveals notes of toasty vanilla and espresso in addition to Asian spices, mocha, pepper, blackberries, creosote, and roasted meats. The exotic perfume..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $1,239.00 -
2000 Chave Hermitage Cathelin Cuvee97AGChave’s 2000 Cuvée Cathelin was monumental. It was a privilege to taste, but also a shame to open so early. If the 1991 seemed young, the 2000 came across as a veritab..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $6,749.00 -
2001 Tardieu Laurent Hermitage92VMDeep, bright ruby-red. Superripe aromas of beefsteak tomato, gunflint and smoke, with a medicinal austerity lurking behind the wine's roasted elements. Fat, dense and full; a lush,..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $120.00 -
2003 Chapoutier Hermitage Le Pavillon100RPEven better, and topping out on my scale, the 2003 Ermitage le Pavillon comes all from the granite soils of the Les Bessards lieu-dit and was aged 100% in new barrels. Its inky rub..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $349.00 -
2004 Chapoutier Hermitage Le Pavillon94WEThis was Chapoutier's initial microcuvée of Hermitage, bottled for the first time in 1989. The 2004 version is smoky and gamy, accented by pepper and a hint of rhubarb, but ..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $245.00 -
2005 Chapoutier Hermitage L'Ermite99+RPLastly, from the very dome of the granite hill of Ermitage is the 2005 Ermitage l’Ermite. An extraordinarily powerful wine that probably needs 10-15 years in the bottle (last..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $2,475.00 -
2006 Chapoutier Hermitage Le Meal Blanc99JDJust as good as the de l’Orée, but in a very different style, the medium gold-hued 2006 Ermitage Le Méal Blanc has a complex, layered perfume of honeysuckle, or..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $229.00 -
2006 Chapoutier Hermitage Le Pavillon98RPShowing more minerality than the le Meal, yet more plushness and sexiness than the l’Ermite, the 2006 Ermitage le Pavillon is a tour de force that gives up sensational notes ..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $565.00 -
2009 Chapoutier Hermitage Le Meal Blanc99RPFrom a warm site and a hot vintage, the 2009 Ermitage le Meal Blanc was harvested on the August 28, and aged in 100% new French oak. Flirting with perfection and a full-bore, exoti..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $249.00 -
2009 Guigal Cote Rotie La Landonne100JDI’ve been lucky to have drunk close to a case of the 2009 Côte Rôtie La Landonne, and if there’s a more perfect Syrah out there, I don’t know of it. R..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $629.00 -
2009 Guigal Cote Rotie La Turque100JDPossibly my favorite vintage ever for the Northern Rhône (2010 and 2015 are both in the running), the 2009 Côte Rôtie La Turque is a mammoth of wine that offers e..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $625.00 -
2010 Guigal Cote Rotie La Turque100JDAs with the 2009, the 2010 Côte Rôtie La Turque represents the pinnacle of red wine and, in this reviewer’s opinion, couldn’t be any better. A dense purple ..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $589.00 -
2010 Paul Aine Jaboulet Hermitage La Chapelle97+RPThe inky colored 2010 Hermitage la Chapelle is a blockbuster in the making, but is certainly not for those craving instant gratification. Massively concentrated and dense, it offer..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $299.00 -
2011 Chapoutier Hermitage Le Meal Blanc99RPSurprisingly, I preferred the 2011 Ermitage le Meal Blanc over the 2012 on this occasion and it showed a more flamboyant, sexy style in its caramelized pineapple, tropical, honeyed..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $239.00