Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage and Montes Folly Syrahs
Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage Syrah 2009
Domaine JL Chave History, Overview
The label today reads Domaine JL Chave. But the story of this Rhone producer doesn’t start here. It goes a long way back. In fact, the Chave family is one of the oldest names in the world of wine. They have been producing one of the world’s greatest wines since 1481!
The label bears an inscription commemorating this achievement, “Vignerons de Père en Fils depuis 1481”, which is translated to, Vine growers from father to son since 1481! The Chave family began cultivating vineyards and making wine in what we now know as the St. Joseph appellation.
They
stared buying land on the Hill of Hermitage in 1865. The land and
family business of making great Rhone wine continues being passed from
generation to generation. Most recently from father to son with Gerard
Chave to Jean Louis Chave. Jean Louis Chave is the 16th generation of
his family to manage the famous Hermitage producer.
The Chave family made the move to Hermitage following the attack of phylloxera that struck most of Europe’s vineyards in the late 19th century.
The Chave family began producing wine in Mauves, when they entered the wine business. In fact, this is where the Chave family still produces their Hermitage wine today. In late 2014, JL Chave completed a renovation and extension of their cellars.
Domaine Jean Louis Chave Vineyards, Terroir, Grapes, Wines, Winemaking
JL Chave produces 2 Hermitage Rouge wines and 1 Hermitage Blanc wine.
Jl Chave owns 14 hectares of vines in Hermitage. 10 hectares are planted to Syrah and are used to produce 2, Hermitage Rouge wines, JL Chave Hermitage and Chave Cuvee Cathelin.
The vines are old, with an average age of 50 years, give or take a few years. The remaining 4 hectare of vines are planted to 80% Marsanne and 20% Roussanne. The grape vines for their white Rhone wine are even older than their red wine vines as they are mostly more than 60 years of age.
Along with the Frey family who own Jaboulet and Michel Chapoutier, the Chave family owns the largest percentage of planted hectares in the Hermitage appellation.
The key to the beauty and complexity found in JL Chave Hermitage comes their mastery of blending. While for the red wines, the only grape used is Syrah, the wine is produced from a melange of fruit sources that come out of some of the best plots in the entire Hermitage appellation.
The
vineyards are dispersed over the hill of Hermitage. In total, they have
vines spread among 14 different parcels in 9 vineyards, or lieux-dits.
The red wine grapes are planted in Bessards, L’Hermite, Peleat, Meal, Beaume, Diognieres and Vercandiered vineyards. The 2 hectares of vines on Bessards is considered by many people to be the heart and soul of the JL Chave wine.
With the wide variety of terroir the vines of JL Chave are planted in, as expected, the types of soils are equally varied. The vineyards have a terroir of rocky soils ranging from granite, limestone, schist, clay and sandstone soil. The Bessards lieu-dit has a terroir that is mostly, steep granite hillside soils.
They have old vines. On Bessards, the average vine age is 50 years. However, the oldest vines on Bessards are more than 80 years of age. Their parcels located on Les Rocoules and Peleat have vines that are even older at over 85 years of age.
The white wine grapes for Chave are planted in 5 hectares of vines that come from Les Rocoules, L’Hermite, Peleat, Maison Blanches and other vineyards. Les Rocoules has some of the oldest white wine grapes in the Northern Rhone, with vines that are more than 80 years old.
Jean Louis Chave Hermitage Rouge
Since 1991, JL Chave has been using mostly stainless steel, along with 3 wooden open top fermenters for alcoholic fermentation. The fruit is destemmed.
Interestingly, this practice took place during the production of wines during the 1800’s, but that fell out of favor late in the 20th century. The fruit from each terroir is vinified separately.
For the red wine of Chave, the grapes are usually partially, but not always fully destemmed. In very ripe years, a portion, up to 50% of the stems might be left on the grapes.
It really varies from vintage to vintage. Vinification takes place in a combination of cement vats, stainless steel and old, open, French oak barrels. Each parcel is vinified and aged separately, until the blending takes place.
Depending on the vintage, malolactic fermentation can take place in casks, vats or tank. Once fermentation has been completed, the wine is moved the large 228 liter oak barrels for ageing. The wines of Jean Louis Chave are aged in barrel for about 18 months. The amount of new oak varies from 10-20%, depending on the vintage.
The used barrels range in age from 1-5 years which can come from Burgundy. Jean Louis Chave has been reducing the amount of new oak with time. His logic is, with refined tannins, the wine does not need that much new oak.
The wine is blended after 18 months in barrel, usually in July. Jean Louis Chave waits for 60-90 days after blending before bottling. The production of Chave Hermitage rouge ranges from 2,000 to 2,500 cases per vintage.
Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/rhone-wines-cote-rotie-hermitage-chateauneuf-du-pape/rhone-wine-hermitage-producer-profiles/jean-louis-chave-hermitage-rhone-wine/
The label today reads Domaine JL Chave. But the story of this Rhone producer doesn’t start here. It goes a long way back. In fact, the Chave family is one of the oldest names in the world of wine. They have been producing one of the world’s greatest wines since 1481!
The label bears an inscription commemorating this achievement, “Vignerons de Père en Fils depuis 1481”, which is translated to, Vine growers from father to son since 1481! The Chave family began cultivating vineyards and making wine in what we now know as the St. Joseph appellation.
The Chave family made the move to Hermitage following the attack of phylloxera that struck most of Europe’s vineyards in the late 19th century.
The Chave family began producing wine in Mauves, when they entered the wine business. In fact, this is where the Chave family still produces their Hermitage wine today. In late 2014, JL Chave completed a renovation and extension of their cellars.
Domaine Jean Louis Chave Vineyards, Terroir, Grapes, Wines, Winemaking
JL Chave produces 2 Hermitage Rouge wines and 1 Hermitage Blanc wine.
The vines are old, with an average age of 50 years, give or take a few years. The remaining 4 hectare of vines are planted to 80% Marsanne and 20% Roussanne. The grape vines for their white Rhone wine are even older than their red wine vines as they are mostly more than 60 years of age.
Along with the Frey family who own Jaboulet and Michel Chapoutier, the Chave family owns the largest percentage of planted hectares in the Hermitage appellation.
The key to the beauty and complexity found in JL Chave Hermitage comes their mastery of blending. While for the red wines, the only grape used is Syrah, the wine is produced from a melange of fruit sources that come out of some of the best plots in the entire Hermitage appellation.
The red wine grapes are planted in Bessards, L’Hermite, Peleat, Meal, Beaume, Diognieres and Vercandiered vineyards. The 2 hectares of vines on Bessards is considered by many people to be the heart and soul of the JL Chave wine.
With the wide variety of terroir the vines of JL Chave are planted in, as expected, the types of soils are equally varied. The vineyards have a terroir of rocky soils ranging from granite, limestone, schist, clay and sandstone soil. The Bessards lieu-dit has a terroir that is mostly, steep granite hillside soils.
They have old vines. On Bessards, the average vine age is 50 years. However, the oldest vines on Bessards are more than 80 years of age. Their parcels located on Les Rocoules and Peleat have vines that are even older at over 85 years of age.
The white wine grapes for Chave are planted in 5 hectares of vines that come from Les Rocoules, L’Hermite, Peleat, Maison Blanches and other vineyards. Les Rocoules has some of the oldest white wine grapes in the Northern Rhone, with vines that are more than 80 years old.
Since 1991, JL Chave has been using mostly stainless steel, along with 3 wooden open top fermenters for alcoholic fermentation. The fruit is destemmed.
Interestingly, this practice took place during the production of wines during the 1800’s, but that fell out of favor late in the 20th century. The fruit from each terroir is vinified separately.
For the red wine of Chave, the grapes are usually partially, but not always fully destemmed. In very ripe years, a portion, up to 50% of the stems might be left on the grapes.
It really varies from vintage to vintage. Vinification takes place in a combination of cement vats, stainless steel and old, open, French oak barrels. Each parcel is vinified and aged separately, until the blending takes place.
Depending on the vintage, malolactic fermentation can take place in casks, vats or tank. Once fermentation has been completed, the wine is moved the large 228 liter oak barrels for ageing. The wines of Jean Louis Chave are aged in barrel for about 18 months. The amount of new oak varies from 10-20%, depending on the vintage.
The used barrels range in age from 1-5 years which can come from Burgundy. Jean Louis Chave has been reducing the amount of new oak with time. His logic is, with refined tannins, the wine does not need that much new oak.
The wine is blended after 18 months in barrel, usually in July. Jean Louis Chave waits for 60-90 days after blending before bottling. The production of Chave Hermitage rouge ranges from 2,000 to 2,500 cases per vintage.
Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/rhone-wines-cote-rotie-hermitage-chateauneuf-du-pape/rhone-wine-hermitage-producer-profiles/jean-louis-chave-hermitage-rhone-wine/
Showing much better
than when last tasted a few years ago. The wine is intense, powerful,
concentrated, vibrant and fresh, with load of sweet, slightly honeyed
lemon, grapefruit, flowers and stone notes. Luscious in texture, the
wine leaves a long impression of fruit and freshness.
Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/rhone-wines-cote-rotie-hermitage-chateauneuf-du-pape/rhone-wine-hermitage-producer-profiles/jean-louis-chave-hermitage-rhone-wine/
Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/rhone-wines-cote-rotie-hermitage-chateauneuf-du-pape/rhone-wine-hermitage-producer-profiles/jean-louis-chave-hermitage-rhone-wine/
Domaine JL Chave History, Overview
The label today reads Domaine JL Chave. But the story of this Rhone producer doesn’t start here. It goes a long way back. In fact, the Chave family is one of the oldest names in the world of wine. They have been producing one of the world’s greatest wines since 1481!
The label bears an inscription commemorating this achievement, “Vignerons de Père en Fils depuis 1481”, which is translated to, Vine growers from father to son since 1481! The Chave family began cultivating vineyards and making wine in what we now know as the St. Joseph appellation.
They
stared buying land on the Hill of Hermitage in 1865. The land and
family business of making great Rhone wine continues being passed from
generation to generation. Most recently from father to son with Gerard
Chave to Jean Louis Chave. Jean Louis Chave is the 16th generation of
his family to manage the famous Hermitage producer.
The Chave family made the move to Hermitage following the attack of phylloxera that struck most of Europe’s vineyards in the late 19th century.
The Chave family began producing wine in Mauves, when they entered the wine business. In fact, this is where the Chave family still produces their Hermitage wine today. In late 2014, JL Chave completed a renovation and extension of their cellars.
Domaine Jean Louis Chave Vineyards, Terroir, Grapes, Wines, Winemaking
JL Chave produces 2 Hermitage Rouge wines and 1 Hermitage Blanc wine.
Jl Chave owns 14 hectares of vines in Hermitage. 10 hectares are planted to Syrah and are used to produce 2, Hermitage Rouge wines, JL Chave Hermitage and Chave Cuvee Cathelin.
The vines are old, with an average age of 50 years, give or take a few years. The remaining 4 hectare of vines are planted to 80% Marsanne and 20% Roussanne. The grape vines for their white Rhone wine are even older than their red wine vines as they are mostly more than 60 years of age.
Along with the Frey family who own Jaboulet and Michel Chapoutier, the Chave family owns the largest percentage of planted hectares in the Hermitage appellation.
The key to the beauty and complexity found in JL Chave Hermitage comes their mastery of blending. While for the red wines, the only grape used is Syrah, the wine is produced from a melange of fruit sources that come out of some of the best plots in the entire Hermitage appellation.
The
vineyards are dispersed over the hill of Hermitage. In total, they have
vines spread among 14 different parcels in 9 vineyards, or lieux-dits.
The red wine grapes are planted in Bessards, L’Hermite, Peleat, Meal, Beaume, Diognieres and Vercandiered vineyards. The 2 hectares of vines on Bessards is considered by many people to be the heart and soul of the JL Chave wine.
With the wide variety of terroir the vines of JL Chave are planted in, as expected, the types of soils are equally varied. The vineyards have a terroir of rocky soils ranging from granite, limestone, schist, clay and sandstone soil. The Bessards lieu-dit has a terroir that is mostly, steep granite hillside soils.
They have old vines. On Bessards, the average vine age is 50 years. However, the oldest vines on Bessards are more than 80 years of age. Their parcels located on Les Rocoules and Peleat have vines that are even older at over 85 years of age.
The white wine grapes for Chave are planted in 5 hectares of vines that come from Les Rocoules, L’Hermite, Peleat, Maison Blanches and other vineyards. Les Rocoules has some of the oldest white wine grapes in the Northern Rhone, with vines that are more than 80 years old.
Jean Louis Chave Hermitage Rouge
Since 1991, JL Chave has been using mostly stainless steel, along with 3 wooden open top fermenters for alcoholic fermentation. The fruit is destemmed.
Interestingly, this practice took place during the production of wines during the 1800’s, but that fell out of favor late in the 20th century. The fruit from each terroir is vinified separately.
For the red wine of Chave, the grapes are usually partially, but not always fully destemmed. In very ripe years, a portion, up to 50% of the stems might be left on the grapes.
It really varies from vintage to vintage. Vinification takes place in a combination of cement vats, stainless steel and old, open, French oak barrels. Each parcel is vinified and aged separately, until the blending takes place.
Depending on the vintage, malolactic fermentation can take place in casks, vats or tank. Once fermentation has been completed, the wine is moved the large 228 liter oak barrels for ageing. The wines of Jean Louis Chave are aged in barrel for about 18 months. The amount of new oak varies from 10-20%, depending on the vintage.
The used barrels range in age from 1-5 years which can come from Burgundy. Jean Louis Chave has been reducing the amount of new oak with time. His logic is, with refined tannins, the wine does not need that much new oak.
The wine is blended after 18 months in barrel, usually in July. Jean Louis Chave waits for 60-90 days after blending before bottling. The production of Chave Hermitage rouge ranges from 2,000 to 2,500 cases per vintage.
Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/rhone-wines-cote-rotie-hermitage-chateauneuf-du-pape/rhone-wine-hermitage-producer-profiles/jean-louis-chave-hermitage-rhone-wine/
Fellow Pour Boy Dr Dan was going to serve this late one night after we'd had four or five other bottles at a wine dinner. I suggested we hold it for when it could be the centerpiece of a tasting, being a 100 point wine that it is. So, we took this and another complementary Syrah to Angeli's Italian, our favorite neighborhood trattoria for a festive holiday season Saturday night dinner. Yes, this release was awarded 100 points
by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 98 points
by Wine Spectator, and 96 points
by Vinous. The label today reads Domaine JL Chave. But the story of this Rhone producer doesn’t start here. It goes a long way back. In fact, the Chave family is one of the oldest names in the world of wine. They have been producing one of the world’s greatest wines since 1481!
The label bears an inscription commemorating this achievement, “Vignerons de Père en Fils depuis 1481”, which is translated to, Vine growers from father to son since 1481! The Chave family began cultivating vineyards and making wine in what we now know as the St. Joseph appellation.
The Chave family made the move to Hermitage following the attack of phylloxera that struck most of Europe’s vineyards in the late 19th century.
The Chave family began producing wine in Mauves, when they entered the wine business. In fact, this is where the Chave family still produces their Hermitage wine today. In late 2014, JL Chave completed a renovation and extension of their cellars.
Domaine Jean Louis Chave Vineyards, Terroir, Grapes, Wines, Winemaking
JL Chave produces 2 Hermitage Rouge wines and 1 Hermitage Blanc wine.
The vines are old, with an average age of 50 years, give or take a few years. The remaining 4 hectare of vines are planted to 80% Marsanne and 20% Roussanne. The grape vines for their white Rhone wine are even older than their red wine vines as they are mostly more than 60 years of age.
Along with the Frey family who own Jaboulet and Michel Chapoutier, the Chave family owns the largest percentage of planted hectares in the Hermitage appellation.
The key to the beauty and complexity found in JL Chave Hermitage comes their mastery of blending. While for the red wines, the only grape used is Syrah, the wine is produced from a melange of fruit sources that come out of some of the best plots in the entire Hermitage appellation.
The red wine grapes are planted in Bessards, L’Hermite, Peleat, Meal, Beaume, Diognieres and Vercandiered vineyards. The 2 hectares of vines on Bessards is considered by many people to be the heart and soul of the JL Chave wine.
With the wide variety of terroir the vines of JL Chave are planted in, as expected, the types of soils are equally varied. The vineyards have a terroir of rocky soils ranging from granite, limestone, schist, clay and sandstone soil. The Bessards lieu-dit has a terroir that is mostly, steep granite hillside soils.
They have old vines. On Bessards, the average vine age is 50 years. However, the oldest vines on Bessards are more than 80 years of age. Their parcels located on Les Rocoules and Peleat have vines that are even older at over 85 years of age.
The white wine grapes for Chave are planted in 5 hectares of vines that come from Les Rocoules, L’Hermite, Peleat, Maison Blanches and other vineyards. Les Rocoules has some of the oldest white wine grapes in the Northern Rhone, with vines that are more than 80 years old.
Since 1991, JL Chave has been using mostly stainless steel, along with 3 wooden open top fermenters for alcoholic fermentation. The fruit is destemmed.
Interestingly, this practice took place during the production of wines during the 1800’s, but that fell out of favor late in the 20th century. The fruit from each terroir is vinified separately.
For the red wine of Chave, the grapes are usually partially, but not always fully destemmed. In very ripe years, a portion, up to 50% of the stems might be left on the grapes.
It really varies from vintage to vintage. Vinification takes place in a combination of cement vats, stainless steel and old, open, French oak barrels. Each parcel is vinified and aged separately, until the blending takes place.
Depending on the vintage, malolactic fermentation can take place in casks, vats or tank. Once fermentation has been completed, the wine is moved the large 228 liter oak barrels for ageing. The wines of Jean Louis Chave are aged in barrel for about 18 months. The amount of new oak varies from 10-20%, depending on the vintage.
The used barrels range in age from 1-5 years which can come from Burgundy. Jean Louis Chave has been reducing the amount of new oak with time. His logic is, with refined tannins, the wine does not need that much new oak.
The wine is blended after 18 months in barrel, usually in July. Jean Louis Chave waits for 60-90 days after blending before bottling. The production of Chave Hermitage rouge ranges from 2,000 to 2,500 cases per vintage.
Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/rhone-wines-cote-rotie-hermitage-chateauneuf-du-pape/rhone-wine-hermitage-producer-profiles/jean-louis-chave-hermitage-rhone-wine/
Not often do we 'normal' folks get the pleasure to drink a 100 point wine. As I've written in this column about collecting and tasting, there are 'every day' wines, 'once-a-week', 'once-a-month', and 'once-a-year' wines, and then, of course, 'special occasion' and 'once-in-a-lifetime' wines. At this rating, it drives a ultra-super premium ($500+) price-point, such that for all but the very privileged few, this is in the latter rather than former categories.
This is also exceptionally extraordinary because it is a SYRAH. More often, 100 point wines tend to be Bordeaux or Burgundian varietals or blends, or perhaps vintage Ports. Very few wines of the Syrah varietal have received 100 point recognition, Penfold's Grange, arguably the top wine of Australia, and this being the only two I've seen or had the privilege of tasting. Moreover, I admit, I am not accustomed to such lofty profiles or character for a single varietal wine based on Syrah. While we drink a lot of this varietal and it is one of our favorites, the profile is not the norm to which we are accustomed.
We recently had a similar experienced the 'other' such wine, Penfold's Grange from the 1990 vintage. Tonight's experience was much the same.
We are used to, and love, big, bold, forward, fruit forward, expressive, thick, concentrated style wines, rare, but found once in a while in Syrahs. Such wines, tend to me more one dimensional, and frankly 'over-the'top' to be considered for such rarified accolades, more afforded wines that are elegant, polished, symphonic in their perfectly balanced and harmonious presentation.
Like the Grange we drank recently, the word I would use to describe this is 'flawless'.
The Chave was dark blackish/purple colored, medium-full bodied, flawless, seamless, perfectly balanced and harmonious blackberry and black currant fruits highlighted with subtle tones of anise, smoke and hints of exotic spices and pepper.
RM 92 points.
https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1077097
On this evening we also opened a rare special bottling of this Chilean Syrah.
Montes Syrah Folly La Finca de Apalta 2010
The terroir driven soils are of granitic origin and primarily consist of decomposing rocks from high above in the chain of mountains that crosses the valley, and therefore the soils in this sector are rather thin and poor in organic matter with a good percolation capacity, which enables the roots to explore the entire profile in search of water.
The grapes are hand-selected and sorted on special selection sorting tables. The vinified wine is then aged in French oak barrels for 24 months.
The 2016 release of this label was awarded 96 points by James Suckling.
Not in the class of the 'old world' Northern Rhone Hermitage Chave, this 'new world' or emerging market Syrah represents the art of the possible of what is coming from the emerging wine producing regions and nascent producers.
More new world style like a big Australian Syrah with its complex concentrated forward fruits, almost obtuse when compared to the Chave, dark inky purple with blackberry and black raspberry fruits highlighted by notes of spice, cassis, currants, mocha and hints of black olive.
RM 92 points.
https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1479344
https://www.monteswines.com/en/