Fung Hei Fat Choy to all Friends of K-Cellars. We wish all of you a prosperous Year of the Dog with good health and success.
Last month, we discussed about the Rhone Valley. This issue we will finish off by a further look at its Northern and Southern sub-regions.
The Northern Region
- A very small region, only about 3,000 hectares
- Produces only 5% of the wines from the whole Rhone Valley
- Climate is cooler with more rain than the South
- Syrah is the only red grape used
- For the white wines, Roussanne, Marsanne, Viognier are the most popular
- Style of the wines in generally are more abundant in taste
- Key appellations include: Cote Rotie, Hermitage, Crozes-Hermitage, Cornas, St. Joseph, St. Perey
- Famous wineries consist of Guigal, Chapoutier, J.L.Chave, Delas Freres, Pierre Gaillard, Bernard Levet,
The Southern Region
- Much bigger region, producing 95% of Rhone wines
- About 15 types of red grapes are commonly used, with Grenache the most important
- White grapes also include Cinsaut, and Mourvedre in addition to the popular Northern grapes
- The wines are more open, and sometimes more alcoholic
- Chateauneuf-du-Pape is the most important appellation, and considered as The King of Southern Rhone
- Meanwhile, Cotes du Rhone is well-known for its huge production of good money value wines
- Other key appellations comprises Gigondas, Lirac, Tavel, Rasteau, Vacqueyras
- Popular wineries include: Beaucastel, Cailloux, Janasse, Rayas, Vidal Fleury
Friends of K-Cellars will certainly find the Rhone Valley a very diverse and interesting region to explore and enjoy. Wish you pleasant drinking all the time!