Cornas & St-Péray 2021: report and top-scoring wines
Cornas and St-Péray both fared well in 2021, producing crunchy, structured reds and focused, driven whites respectively. Matt Walls gives his expert view on these top tier appellations.
This was the first year that Pierre Clape, of Domaine Clape, had witnessed frost on the slopes of Cornas; from these parcels he lost 40% of his crop.
On the flat, however, it was much worse – here he lost 90%. Like almost everybody else, he had to raise alcohol levels – here by adding concentrated must – to achieve 12% alcohol. The last time they had to do this was in 2008.
Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for top-scoring Cornas & St-Péray 2021 wines
See all 400 Rhône 2021 tasting notes and scores
See the Rhône 2021 full vintage report and top scoring wines
Olivier Clape pointed out the climatic similarity between 2008 and 2021; a wet summer, and heavy rains in September. Thankfully they’ll make better wines this time round: in 2008 they picked after the rain, in 2021 they harvested the day before. Not all their neighbours were so lucky.
A handful of wines I tasted did suffer from a lack of ripeness, but largely speaking this is a successful vintage in Cornas in a fresh, crunchy, structured style. Many 2018s and 2019s suffered from the scorching weather, delivering wines that were excessively rich and alcoholic; 2021 is much more classic – with all the commanding tannins that implies.
See also – individual appellation analysis on:
Côte-Rôtie and Condrieu | St-Joseph | Crozes-Hermitage | Hermitage
St-Péray this year is excellent. I can’t remember a vintage here with such intense freshness, focus and drive. The reason that some wines performed less well was often due to winemaking decisions (overoaking, excessive reduction, or lactic notes) rather than issues in the vineyard. They will age unusually well thanks to their electric acidity.
Rhône 2021 score tables:
All top Rhône 2021 score table
Top-scoring southern Rhône 2021 score table
Top-scoring northern Rhône 2021 score table
Cornas & St-Péray 2021 key producers:
M Chapoutier – St-Péray
Domaine Clape – St-Péray
Domaine A&E Verset – Cornas
Domaine Clape – Cornas
Domaine du Coulet – Cornas
Domaine du Tunnel – Cornas
Domaine Johann Michel – Cornas
Domaine Vincent Paris – Cornas
Cornas & St-Péray 2021 top value wines:
Domaine Bernard Gripa, Les Figuiers, St-Péray
Domaine Guy Farge, Grain de Silex, St-Péray
Delas Chante Perdrix, Cornas
Domaine A&E Verset, Signature Verset, Cornas
Domaine Guy Farge, Harmonie, Cornas
Back to the Rhône 2021 homepage
Matt Walls’ top-scoring Cornas & St-Péray 2021 wines:
The wines below all scored 93 points or above, and are listed in order of St-Péray and Cornas in score order.
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M Chapoutier, Haut Chamblard, St-Péray, Rhône, France, 2021
Michel Chapoutier is more readily associated with Hermitage, but he owns vineyards across the northern Rhône and beyond. He’s a relative latecomer to St-Péray, but...
2021
M ChapoutierSt-Péray
Domaine Clape, St-Péray, Rhône, France, 2021
Bright, freshly cut pear on the nose. Full-bodied with more weight than most 2021 St-Pérays, teamed with vibrant, buzzy acidity that really lasts into the...
2021
Domaine ClapeSt-Péray
Cave Julien Cécillon, Gemini, St-Péray, Rhône, France, 2021
Gloriously expressive mango fruit on the nose, this is so fresh. Full-bodied, rich and opulent but not gloopy. It has great concentration and bright acidity,...
2021
Cave Julien CécillonSt-Péray
Domaine Bernard Gripa, Les Figuiers, St-Péray, Rhône, France, 2021
Full-bodied, with a good sense of weight and concentration, allied to a really bright, zingy citrus freshness. Focused and precise, very young still but this...
2021
Domaine Bernard GripaSt-Péray
Domaine Guy Farge, Grain de Silex, St-Péray, Rhône, France, 2021
Almond and apricot fruit characters, which are soft and juicy on the palate, but all shot through with laser-like acidity that projects the flavours into...
2021
Domaine Guy FargeSt-Péray
Domaine Laurent Fayolle, Montis, St-Péray, Rhône, France, 2021
Ripe but not overripe, this has zesty nectarine with a subtle nutty note – a beautifully fresh nose. Full-bodied, rounded and plump on the palate,...
2021
Domaine Laurent FayolleSt-Péray
Domaine Clape, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
A tasting of the constituent lieux-dits indicates that this will be a fresh, well-balanced style of Cornas. The acidity is high this year, and the...
2021
Domaine ClapeCornas
Domaine Johann Michel, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
Bright and intense both in colour and in aroma. Hyper-fresh, searching berry fruits, this is electric. Rounded, with plump berry fruits that are concentrated and...
2021
Domaine Johann MichelCornas
Domaine Vincent Paris, La Geynale, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
A gorgeous nose, fresh, precise and surprisingly aromatic for a Cornas. The smoky oak and peppery Syrah spice combine well. Not massive, this is actually...
2021
Domaine Vincent ParisCornas
Domaine A&E Verset, Signature Verset, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
With its clove oak characters, this is a rich and opulent wine for the vintage, ripe and full-bodied. The tannins are driving and intense, with...
2021
Domaine A&E VersetCornas
Domaine du Coulet, Geniale Patronne, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
Sweet strawberry and raspberry fruit. Medium-bodied with no stalkiness, it’s rounded and smooth. A mineral expression with good intensity, it’s super fresh, with the acidity...
2021
Domaine du CouletCornas
Domaine du Tunnel, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
Ripe blackberry and black cherry yoghurt on the nose, flowing onto a palate characterised by ripe tannins and good acidity. It's concentrated but not massive,...
2021
Domaine du TunnelCornas
Delas, Chante Perdrix, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
Decidedly oaky in style, the oak tannins add to the robust fruit-derived tannins to create something of a beast! Certainly ripe enough, with great driving...
2021
DelasCornas
Domaine A&E Verset, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
Hot tarmac and bonfire ash aromas - decidedly smoky, with herbal undertones. Medium- to full-bodied, there's no lack of ripeness, it's concentrated too, if not...
2021
Domaine A&E VersetCornas
Domaine du Coulet, Vivre libre ou mourir, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
Bright and lifted violet and liquorice aromatics, a touch of veal stock on the palate. Tight, bright and vibrant with trenchant acidity and chalky tannins....
2021
Domaine du CouletCornas
Domaine Guy Farge, Harmonie, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
A lovely herbal display on the nose, with fresh thyme, rosemary and bay. They follow on to the palate, met by juicy, smooth berry fruits....
2021
Domaine Guy FargeCornas
Domaine du Coulet, Brise Cailloux, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
Bright and floral, with potpourri, rose and blood orange aromas. It’s silky on the tongue, then the very high acidity dashes in like a whippet....
2021
Domaine du CouletCornas
Domaine du Coulet, Billes Noires, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
More depth to the nose and palate than his Brise Cailloux this year, this is enjoyably silky, with raspberry and rose. An aromatic, harmonious, fresh...
2021
Domaine du CouletCornas
Domaine Eric & Joël Durand, Prémices, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
Naturalistic blackberry fruit aromas, with no overt oak. It’s medium-bodied, with no great concentration but a good sense of freshness and precision. Gently serrated Cornas...
2021
Domaine Eric & Joël DurandCornas
François Villard, Jouvet, Cornas, Rhône, France, 2021
Good concentration to this full-bodied wine, that’s showing good tannic finesse. It's quite intense, with fine, pliable tannins that are present but ripe and not...
2021
François VillardCornas
