Rhône to Remember

It feels like forever since we’ve done a Rhône offer, and right now the timing feels right. We’ve built up our coffers again, and almost everything here is in stock and ready to ship.

There are plenty of marquee bottles: 1995 and 2003 Jamet Côte Brune, 2010 Guigal La Landonne, 1990 Rayas Blanc, Beaucastel Hommage à Jacques Perrin, and a deep run of Thierry Allemand Reynard. But some of the wines I’m most excited about are the ones flying a little further under the radar, with great pricing and very high critical acclaim. I’ve been turning to the Southern Rhône in particular lately for exactly that reason.

For near-term drinking this fall, I’d look hard at the 2003 and 2006 Beaucastel, 2009 Clos du Mont-Olivet Papet, 2004 Clos Saint Jean Deus ex Machina, 2005 Pegau Cuvée Réservée, 2009 Brunel Les Cailloux, and 2010 Saint Préfert Auguste Favier. These are mature, serious Châteauneufs with the advantage of bottle age already behind them.

And then there’s the Allemand. I think the wines here are spectacular. Thierry Allemand has long held a singular place in Cornas, and Reynard absolutely belongs in a serious, balanced cellar. The wines have tremendous aging potential, and having both 2015 and 2020 Reynard together makes this an especially memorable pair.

Sharp eyes will also spot the last bottle of 2016 Gigondas L’Argnée, the 100-point 2010 Grand Veneur Vieilles Vignes, and the 2019 Faury Côte-Rôtie at $85. Those are the kinds of bottles I would not expect to sit around for long.