Saint-Joseph

L’Olivaie is the branded name given to the fruits of magnificent 60-year-old vines located at St Jean de Muzols at the northern edge of the so-called cradle of St Joseph. Having enjoyed an upbringing in 25 percent new wood, with the balance shared between barrel and demi-muid, the 2016 has blacker fruits than Silice, but the integrated yet ripe tannin profile is very much le style de la maison. It may not completely work in translation but Jérôme describes this one as jovial. A bringer of joy, certainly. Drink 2021-2025.
Simon Field MW, Wine Buyer

A lovely, appealingly aromatic nose with red berry, dark spice and sun-dried herb characters. This is perfectly balanced with surprising density, concentration on the mid-palate and mouth-watering acidity. This is generous and full on the finish and will be impressive from the first taste to the last.
 Laura Atkinson - Private Account Manager

Paradise is never postponed with this outstanding wine, showing its pedigree from the outset and set to blossom with real panache. Dark chocolate, spice and liqueur de cassis from famously precipitous 85 year old vines. The grapes were 50% destemmed, such is Jérôme’s confidence in the vintage, and the wine will have had over 18 months in new barrique when bottled.
Simon Field MW, BBR Buyer, February 2012

Jérôme Coursodon’s reputation continues to soar. Ideally placed vineyards and a perspective which inclines towards perfectionism have both helped him on his way. Add to that the extraordinary natural benevolence of the vintage, and his legacy seems secure. It is fantastic to see such a famous old estate performing so well.

A cuvée rather than a specific lieu-dit, L’Olivaie has enjoyed an upbringing in 25% new wood, with the balance shared between barrel and demi-muid. Blacker fruits than Le Silice, but the integrated yet ripe tannin profile is very much le style de la maison.
Simon Field MW, BBR Buyer, February 2012

Jérôme Coursodon’s reputation continues to soar. Ideally placed vineyards and a perspective which inclines towards perfectionism have both helped him on his way. Add to that the extraordinary natural benevolence of the vintage, and his legacy seems secure. It is fantastic to see such a famous old estate performing so well.

Rhône 2009 - Berrys Recommends
With plenty of bright and red & black fruit, allied to ripe tannins and a great structure, the 2009 St Joseph 'Silice' is a fine example of this up and coming commune.
(Fergus Stewart, BBR Fine Wine) Jérôme describes the 2009 vintage as powerful and robust and the power is certainly evidenced in the Silice, which has a rich texture and a real weight of damson and cherry fruit. The trademark St Joseph minerality and Coursodon polish are not absent, however, and there is a pleasing spicy finish.

A St. Joseph with lovely intensity and great finesse. There is an attractive fresh ‘coolness’ to the fruit, fine tannins and pitch perfect balance. Medium bodied but very fine.
Fergus Stewart, Private Account Manager

Tank fermented and from the fruit of 22-year-old vines, that is to say unexceptional on paper, the Silice benefits from Jérôme’s prestidigitatorary skills; he has conjured up a real gem, full of ripe, blackberry fruit and resonant, peppery depth.
Simon Field MW, BBR Buyer

Now respected as one of St Joseph’s top three growers, the naturally diffident Jérôme has acquired new confidence, and the wines return the compliment. The pedigree of their birth, that is to say the best, most precipitous, site in St Jean de Muzols, Tournon and Mauves, is now underlined by a suitably prestigious education, which is far from sentimental. For Jérôme, 2010 captures the best of 2006 and 2007, both of which have grown up very nicely indeed.

The élevage for L’Olivaie is the same as for the Silice, except that 20 percent of the demi-muids are new. Although not specifically parcellaire, the components of this cuvée come mainly from St Jean de Muzols and the vines average over 60 years in age. The wine borrows more from the darker end of the spectrum, with crushed blackberry and blackcurrant evidenced, and behind that lavender and hints of bay.
Simon Field MW - Rhône Buyer

This vintage was not without its challenges for Jérôme: frost in May, hail in July and very low, uneconomical yields. A very late harvest has produced wines with low pHs, relatively low alcohol and very subtle phenolics. He likens the style to some of the wines made by his father Pierre in the 1980s. In warm years his wines can be very (although not over) ripe, so this redressing of nature’s balance is actually quite welcome, as evidenced by the quality of the finished wines.

We especially liked L’Amarybelle this year; the organic rigour of the tending of its vines echoed in the glass with a rare purity and no lack of charm. Dark fruits and soft spices are buttressed by finely etched tannins and crisp acidity. Hints of eucalypt and mint at the back of the palate enhance the wine yet further.
Simon Field MW - Rhône Buyer

Dynamic and energetic, Yves sometimes gives the impression of trying too hard: there is so much activity and so many wines, why can’t the message be clearer? Well, my message is clear and it underlines the overall quality of the range, proved once again by a recent (late 2014) Decanter tasting which put M Cuilleron's Côte Rôtie on its own at the very top of the tree. Pragmatism over the hot topic of destemming and a general inclination to harvest late are cited as two cornerstones of the Cuilleron philosophy. Yves praises the equilibrium of his 2013 whites, and is pleased with both the colour and the tannic structure of his reds.

80 year-old vines at low yields, with a production of a mere 4000 bottles. Bold ripe black fruits, then spice, complexity, velvety tannic grip and a powerful finish.
Simon Field MW, Rhône Wine Buyer

The three hectare Cuminaille plot was the first to be cultivated by Pierre after leaving Guigal. He identified the merits of these granitic sandy slopes and has been proving the point ever since with an outstanding wine which is aged for 18 months in French barrel of which 40% is new. The result is for me an archetype of St Joseph, finely structured, with great freshness, ripe dark fruit and generous pepper and spice on the finish.
Simon Field MW, Rhône Wine Buyer 

Pierre Gaillard’s bluff exterior belies one of the keenest and most highly-respected minds in the valley. His projects in Collioure, Banyuls, Faugères and closer to home, Seyssuel, are all highly successful, but the mother-ship remains the ever expanding winery high above the medieval village of Malleval. His 2012 wines merit praise for thier colour and ripeness of fruit; for Pierre there is less matière than 2009 or 2010 but more engaging elegance

A broad seductive graphite nose provides the overture to a very serious (Syrah-ious maybe...?), synaesthetic, symphony of colour and restraint like a Turner sea-scape. This is farmed on impossibly steep slopes behind Mauves, where eponymous granite underwrites the vines, and their progeny, with artistic rigour. Drink 2019-2024.
Simon Field MW, Wine Buyer

St Joseph is very close to Jean-Louis’ heart; the Syrah from these south-east-facing granitic hills is a grape “qui Pinote”, by which he means a grape which assumes the aromatic complexity and silky texture of a fine Burgundy. The Offerus is made from vines in Mauves and St-Jean-de Muzols. Its fruit not entirely de-stemmed, which lends extra grip to the notes of crushed raspberry, cassis and tapenade. Drink 2019-2024.
Simon Field MW, Wine Buyer

This cuvee is mainly matured in concrete vats, with only 30% of the wine seeing oak. This brings a real focus on the purity of fruit. The nose is dark and dense with lots of blackberry fruit. A good mineral streak runs through the palate which is well-structured with firm tannins. Drink 2020-2025.
Oliver Barton, Buying Assistant