2018 | Domaine Courbis | St Joseph Les Royes

Limpid straw-gold. High-pitched tangerine, yellow apple, fennel and jasmine aromas show impressive clarity and a building mineral note. Taut and sharply focused in the mouth, then more fleshy in the middle, offering spice-tinged citrus and orchard fruit, honeydew flavors that are complemented by a subtle vanilla quality. Finishes with nervy mineral cut and solid thrust, leaving a sexy floral note behind.

Reviews:

• Wine Advocate: Lifted on the nose, with hints of nail polish remover, I'm confident the bottled 2018 Saint Joseph Les Royes will turn out fine. Cherries and raspberries appear in a medium to full-bodied wine that shows more structure and acidity than the regular Saint Joseph, finishing long and crisp.

• Vinous: Limpid straw-gold. High-pitched tangerine, yellow apple, fennel and jasmine aromas show impressive clarity and a building mineral note. Taut and sharply focused in the mouth, then more fleshy in the middle, offering spice-tinged citrus and orchard fruit, honeydew flavors that are complemented by a subtle vanilla quality. Finishes with nervy mineral cut and solid thrust, leaving a sexy floral note behind.

Producer Information

Domaine Courbis is a wine estate in the northern Rhône. It is best known for its red wines made from Syrah grown in the Cornas and Saint-Joseph appellations. All wines are suitable for vegans. The estate owns about 35 hectares (87 acres) of vineyards on south and east facing hillsides. There are 8ha of Syrah in Cornas and 18ha in Saint-Joseph. In the latter there are also 5ha of white varieties – mostly Marsanne with a little Roussanne. These are planted on outcrops of limestone. There is also a one hectare plot in Saint-Péray, split between Marsanne and Roussanne. Even smaller parcels include some Crozes-Hermitage Syrah at Pont de l'Isère, plus some Syrah vines classified as IGP Ardèche and IGP Collines Rhodaniennes. The winery is built into the hillside in the far south of the Saint-Joseph zone on the border with Cornas. It is gravity fed to allow gentle movement of must and wine. Grapes are hand harvested and 100 percent de-stemmed. The white Saint-Josephs are fermented in tank; the standard cuvée matures for 10-12 months, with one third in new oak and the rest in tank. It is 97 percent Marsanne with a touch of Roussanne. The single vineyard Les Royes bottling of Marsanne is aged for 16 months in barriques, 80 percent of which are new. The Saint Péray is partially barrel fermented and aged in tank and barrique. The Syrahs are vinified in temperature controlled stainless steel. Timings vary across the range. Lighter red wines are matured in a mix of tank and used barriques. The top two Cornas wines are La Sabarotte and Les Eygats, both aged new and one year old oak. The former has a 70:30 split while the latter is 50:50.

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