Southern Rhône: 2023 Vintage Report
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Published: 3rd March 2025
LONGER READ
Catriona Felstead MW, Rhône Buyer
Growers in the Rhône Valley are becoming increasingly adept at coping with mixed and extreme weather conditions – and 2023 was no exception. Here, our Rhône Buyer Catriona Felstead MW explains why this is a vintage defined by the vineyard decisions of individual growers.
The vintage at a glance
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Quality: |
Healthy grapes: |
Harvest: |
| a showstopping, delicious vintage for those who made correct harvest decisions | the Mistral wind dried bunches after rain and tempered extreme August heat | picking started early with older vines proving resilient to the late summer heat |
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Gorgeous red wines: |
Ripe white wines: |
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| restrained alcohols and class, particularly in Châteauneuf-du-Pape | rich and floral with elegant structure |
After the drought in 2022, the Southern Rhône welcomed the rainfall that autumn. To put this into context, 218mm of rain fell from 18th October until the end of the year – it was a mere 221mm for the entire nine and a half months before that. The growers were, initially, delighted with the increased water reserves in the soil but it became very dry from January. There was almost no rain and variable temperatures for the first three months of 2023.
The mild weather meant vines were maturing early, with buds developing from early April. May continued with mild temperatures but with a strong Mistral breeze ahead of flowering mid-month. Towards the end of May, the heat began to rise with a high of 32.5 degrees Celsius – a sudden contrast to the 8 degrees Celsius earlier that month. A hailstorm at the end of May caused concern but damage was limited by the heavy rain; the same volume of water fell in two hours that day as had fallen since the beginning of January.
The heat remained high in June – around 30 to 32 degrees Celsius – and it was humid. This is where the effect of the Mistral came into its own versus the North and other French regions. The drying effect of the wind meant that, although downy mildew made an appearance, the damage wasn’t widespread. It impacted some yields but not overall quality.
From 10th July, the heat began to rise again with temperatures hitting 38 degrees Celsius. It was warm but nowhere near as hot as 2022. That was until halfway through August. On 22nd August, temperatures jumped to a record-breaking 43 degrees Celsius, dropping only to 27 degrees at night. The heatwave was short-lived but, at this stage of an already dry season, caused some young vines to shut down. However, the older vines of these resilient, Mediterranean grape varieties demonstrated how well adapted they were to the heat spikes of a changing climate, and did not suffer.
A brief bout of rain (30mm) on 26th August, the drying breeze of a 100km-per-hour Mistral wind and much cooler nights added freshness and set the grapes up nicely for harvest. Picking was dry with many growers choosing to start very early – sometimes at night – to avoid the peak afternoon temperatures. The growers were very happy with the results.
The 2023 vintage is something of a showstopper, producing some gorgeous wines in the South, especially in Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Despite the ups and downs of the growing season, the fruit was generally very healthy here and volumes are good. The combination of a hot-but-not-too-hot summer until mid-August – along with the crucial cooling and drying Mistral wind – has produced succulent, ripe yet juicy wines with restrained alcohols, wonderful poise and class. This is an approachable vintage, delicious from almost now, yet with the weight and texture to still be shining for many years to come. To me, it feels like a combination of 2020 and 2022 and is my favourite vintage of the decade so far.
