Syrah (Côte-Rôtie)

Since Syrah is thought to be native to France, specifically the so-called northern Rhone region, we're going to spend the last two days of our Syrah tour in the northern Rhone. Today, we make our return to Côte-Rôtie, having visited previously when we tasted Viognier. 

What is Côte-Rôtie? It's an Appellation d'origine Controllee (AOC) where the vineyards are planted on ridiculously steep slopes, many at 60 degrees, facing the Rhone. While the wines here are red, we visited here when we were tasting Viognier because two grapes are allowed in these wines -- at least 80% must be the red grape Syrah and up to 20% can be from the white grape Viognier. The resultant wine is what you get when you blend bacon with flowers and toss in just a bit of effervescence.

The climate here is unusual. Winters are quite wet and the cold mistral winds that sweep off of the Mediterranean blow constantly through the winter and often into spring. It's common that these winds howl with sustained force of about 65KPH/40MPH and at least several times in most years, they get up to 185KPH/115MPH for an extended period of time. In both late spring and early fall, the vinyeards are often covered by a morning fog.

Remember that Syrah thrives in sunshine. To get this, notice that almost all of the vineyards are planted along bends in the river so that they don't just face the river itself, but also do so in a southeasterly direction. And, with slopes so steep, the granite and schist soil, necessary to growing the Syrah because it retains heat from the sunlight so well, tends to erode. Winemakers take several precautions to limit this. First, they build stone walls around the vineyards to block some of the mistral winds. And, second, they can often be found gathering eroded soil and carrying it back up the hills to replace it from where it came.

The wines found here are for patient connoisseurs. When too young, they will not have opened up enough to justify the expense in having purchased them. When you drink Côte-Rôtie very young, you are usually talking about roughly 5-7 years after harvest. The best wines from the area, however, are typically coming into their own after about 12-15 years.

Are they worth the price? That's very subjective and largely a question of what that sort of expenditure means to you. The wines from the area that I have had have been well worth their cost, but many are priced at more than 10 times what I paid. And, if you want to buy a great Côte-Rôtie that is mature enough to be ready to drink when you buy it, change that 10 to perhaps 25. 

Are they worth the wait? Yes, they are. These are spectacular wines, incredibly expressive and unique. While they are often ready to drink before 15 years, many will continue to mature and improve well into their third or even fourth or fifth decades. These are special wines.

Pair your Côte-Rôtie with grilled meats. And, whatever it is that you are eating, add some bacon to provide a perfect complement to the Côte-Rôtie.