Cornas 2019: Report and top scoring wines
The 2019 vintage has produced many atypical Cornas wines finds Matt Walls although the more moderate and balanced wines are delicious.
This is a strange year for Cornas, which produced very ripe, accessible wines often with melted berries like a fruit coulis at their heart.
Scroll down to see Matt’s top Cornas 2019 tasting notes and scores
This may sound delicious – and the more moderate, balanced wines are – but most are atypical, simply not very Cornas-like.
Theo Allemand of Domaine Thierry Allemand started picking on 4th September – not their earliest date, but not far off. He says that fermentations were slow and long due to yeasts struggling to convert all the sugar – a dangerous situation that can lead to volatile acidity. He prefers his 2018s.
I don’t believe this is a year for long ageing in Cornas.
There are some interesting wines, but most lack the savoury fruit and chiselled, serrated tannins that make Cornas so engaging and vital.
Quick links Northern Rhone
Individual appellation analysis and top-scoring wines:
Condrieu and Château-Grillet
Saint-Joseph
Key producers in 2019
Domaine A&E Verset
Ferraton Père et Fils
Domaine Vincent Paris
Value picks
Ferraton Père et Fils Cornas ‘Les Grands Mûriers’ 2019
Domaine Guy Farge Cornas ‘Harmonie’ 2019
Pierre Gaillard Cornas 2019
Domaine Vincent Paris Cornas ‘Granit 30’ 2019
See Matt’s top Cornas 2019 tasting notes and scores
See also
Rhône 2019 En Primeur: Full report plus top scoring winesNorthern Rhône 2019 report plus top scoring winesSouthern Rhône 2019 report plus top scoring wines
Domaine Vincent Paris, Granit 60, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2019
It has a nice balance between ripe fruit and some earthier, herbal scents. Very ripe, pure, concentrated. This has more class than most this year,...
2019
Domaine Vincent ParisCornas
Domaine A&E Verset, Signature, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2019
Aromas of cocoa nibs, sandalwood and cedar over pronounced blackcurrant notes. This is a soft and easy-going style of Cornas which has more tannin and...
2019
Domaine A&E VersetCornas
Domaine Vincent Paris, La Geynale, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2019
Grown on the granite slopes of lieu-dit La Geynale, one of the finest of the appellation. The whole bunch really gives lift and brightness to...
2019
Domaine Vincent ParisCornas
Domaine A&E Verset, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2019
Spicy, with a dark chocolate note on the nose. Soft and yielding, ripe and juicy on the palate, with velvety tannins that have melted seamlessly...
2019
Domaine A&E VersetCornas
Domaine Vincent Paris, Granit 30, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2019
Lovely ripe freshness to the fruit, really bright summer pudding aromas. Mouthcoating fruit and tannin, very fine tannin. Acidity is surprisingly marked. Plenty of ripe...
2019
Domaine Vincent ParisCornas
Ferraton Père & Fils, Patou, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2019
A grilled, roasted, charred aromatic display, burnt herbs. Very full-bodied, very rich and opulent. Mouthcoating ripe tannin. It's very modern in style, with some cola...
2019
Ferraton Père & FilsCornas
M Chapoutier, Temenos, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2019
Fresh and brooding, with an inner meatiness. Very full-bodied, very powerful, but soft and yielding, pliable tannins. Mouth-coating, rich, sweet succulence to the tannins. Long...
2019
M ChapoutierCornas
Tardieu-Laurent, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2019
The bottling previously known as 'Coteau', which has since dropped its cuvée name. The iron tang in the fruit certainly points this towards Cornas in...
2019
Tardieu-LaurentCornas
Delas Frères, Chante Perdrix, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2019
Intense on the nose, a touch of char and cola. Very full-bodied, but there is some inner freshness and acidity. Tannins are plentiful, very ripe....
2019
Delas FrèresCornas
Domaine Guy Farge, Harmonie, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2019
Touch of graphite and some florality on the nose ground into the ripe berry fruit. Very round and ripe, with a touch of menthol in...
2019
Domaine Guy FargeCornas
Ferraton Père & Fils, Les Grands Mûriers, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2019
Dark, herbal, brooding. Very full-bodied, it has firm tannins - savoury, saline tannins that are very Cornas. Structurally this is more correct than most in...
2019
Ferraton Père & FilsCornas
Pierre Gaillard, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2019
From an east-facing parcel of 70-year-old vines, all destemmed and aged in barriques, 50% new. A very ripe style, with dried fig and dark chocolate,...
2019
Pierre GaillardCornas
Domaine Durand Eric & Joël, Empreintes, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2019
Some freshness and lively spiciness to the very ripe fruit. Very full-bodied, very concentrated, quite heavy. There is some freshness deep at the wines's core...
2019
Domaine Durand Eric & JoëlCornas
