Côte-Rôtie & Condrieu 2021: report and top-scoring wines
Variations in quality for Côte-Rôtie's reds, and some gems to seek out for Condrieu's whites: Matt Walls assesses the wines from the furthest reaches of the northern Rhône in 2021.
Is frost a bad thing? Yes; but it can have unexpected benefits. It can kill shoots, reducing yields, but it doesn’t necessarily affect quality.
In cooler growing seasons, vines with fewer bunches can find it easier to ripen them. So given the inclement conditions that followed the frost in 2021, optimists might consider it advantageous that the crop load had been lightened.
Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for top-scoring Côte-Rôtie & Condrieu 2021 wines
See all 400 Rhône 2021 tasting notes and scores
See the Rhône 2021 full vintage report and top scoring wines
Low potential alcohol levels meant that growers could wait to pick until the tannins were ripe without worrying about elevated degrees. ‘Otherwise,’ said François Villard, of his eponymous domaine, ‘it would really have been considered a bad vintage.’
Stéphane Ogier, of his eponymous domaine, agreed that it was a year to pick late, despite the risks; rot was widespread. He doesn’t intend to make any single-vineyard bottlings this year.
See also -individual appellation analysis on:
Crozes-Hermitage | St-Joseph | Cornas and St-Péray | Hermitage
Some of those who managed to ripen their crop went on to make some good wines, in an aromatic, mineral style with fairly austere tannins and low alcohol. But there are many other wines that are simply weak. I’ve heard some comparisons with the 2014 vintage, but I would place 2014 above 2021 in quality. Jean-Paul Jamet, of Domaine JP Jamet, and Stéphane Ogier suggested 2004 as stylistically analogous, which feels more accurate.
Condrieu fared better. A relatively cool growing season and plenty of water made for a crop of wines with intensity, good acidity and balanced alcohol. ‘I think it’s a great year for whites,’ says Ogier. His superlative Condrieu Les Vieilles Vignes de Jacques Vernay proves his point.
Rhône 2021 score tables:
All top Rhône 2021 score table
Top-scoring southern Rhône 2021 score table
Top-scoring northern Rhône 2021 score table
Côte-Rôtie & Condrieu 2021 key producers:
Domaine François Merlin – Côte-Rôtie
M Chapoutier – Côte-Rôtie
Domaine JP Jamet – Côte-Rôtie
Stéphane Ogier – Condrieu
André Perret – Condrieu
Domaine Niero – Condrieu
Côte-Rôtie & Condrieu 2021 top value wines:
Benjamin & David Duclaux, La Chana, Côte-Rôtie
Domaine Burgaud, Côte-Rôtie
Domaine François Merlin, Côte-Rôtie
Domaine Garon Les Triotes, Côte-Rôtie
Domaine Garon, La Vieille Maison, Condrieu
Domaine Niero Chérytage, Condrieu
Domaine Niero, Coeur de Roncharde, Condrieu
Back to the Rhône 2021 homepage
Matt Walls’ top-scoring Côte-Rôtie & Condrieu 2021 wines:
The wines below all scored 95 points or above, and are listed Condrieu then Côte-Rôtie in score order.
Related content
Rhône 2021 en primeur: full vintage report and top-scoring wines
Walls: Top-quality and great-value Côte-Rôtie alternatives
Walls: Brune and blonde soils in Côte-Rôtie – do they really make all the difference?
Stéphane Ogier, Les Vieilles Vignes de Jacques Vernay, Condrieu, Rhône, France, 2021
It's full-bodied, rich, and opulent on the palate, teamed with great salinity and length. Serious acidity for a Condrieu, real tension and energy - this has the life force to age well and a long finish. A great Condrieu in the making. All fruit from Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf lieu-dit La Combe. Aged in demi-muids and small foudres.
2021
Stéphane OgierCondrieu
André Perret, Chéry, Condrieu, Rhône, France, 2021
Beautifully measured. Perret avoids any excess fat, oak or alcohol to produce a particularly charming, effortless style. So vibrant with fresh acidity and a perfumed finish; not as concentrated as his 2020, but brighter. 60-year-old vines, southand southeast-facing. One-third fermented and aged in stainless steel, the rest in oak barrels, 20% new.
2021
André PerretCondrieu
Domaine Niero, Chérytage, Condrieu, Rhône, France, 2021
More nectarine than peach, this has real presence on the palate, and great freshness. Concentrated and intense, this has great salinity and impact and huge length, with a refreshing mineral edge. This is not a new cuvée, but rather an evolution of their cuvée Héritage. After a closer inspection of their plot boundaries, it transpired that their Chéry plot is actually partly in Vernon, partly in Chéry. So now they are bottling the Vernon part separately, and the remaining part of Chéry now goes into their cuvée Héritage from the 2021 vintage - hence the new name, Chérytage.
2021
Domaine NieroCondrieu
Domaine Niero, Coeur de Roncharde, Condrieu, Rhône, France, 2021
Lovely fragrant peach aromatics, great purity, so clean, with jasmine over the top. Medium- to full-bodied, this has great focus and direction, lovely bright acidity, no excess alcohol or dominating oak, and a long finish. Beautifully balanced, this is a must-buy for Condrieu lovers. A new cuvée for Niero since the 2018 vintage, from the granitic lieu-dit Roncharde, just above the Côte Chatillon.
2021
Domaine NieroCondrieu
Domaine Xavier Gérard, Arbuel, Condrieu, Rhône, France, 2021
A full-bodied, generous style of Condrieu, with characteristic fat and breadth on the palate. The alcohol is present but not excessive, it contributes further textural wealth and richness to the long finish. This is really excellent. Very pure, harmonious and classic.
2021
Domaine Xavier GérardCondrieu
Domaine Xavier Gérard, Côte Chatillon, Condrieu, Rhône, France, 2021
Medium-bodied, not massive, with a good sense of freshness and well-balanced acidity. A creamy texture, with lovely purity of sweet apricot fruit. Balanced alcohol, with plenty of energy, and surprisingly long. Very good indeed. From the Côte Chatillon, towards the northern end of the appellation.
2021
Domaine Xavier GérardCondrieu
Lionel Faury, Le Mornieux, Condrieu, Rhône, France, 2021
Intense violets on the nose, this is hypnotically aromatic. Very full-bodied and generous, with delicious peach fruit. Has a sense of sweet ripeness on the palate that's balanced by acidity and salty extract. This has real depth and will satisfy Condrieu lovers. La Berne was not bottled separately this year due to frost.
2021
Lionel FauryCondrieu
M Chapoutier, Coteau de Chéry, Condrieu, Rhône, France, 2021
Intense struck-match reduction at this stage, the florals and mandarin aromas sit underneath. Full-bodied but not massive, this has great freshness, with the characteristic Condrieu generosity. You really feel the intense salty, assertive Chéry terroir underneath. Will be excellent - a very powerful style. Aged in two- and three-year-old demi-muids.
2021
M ChapoutierCondrieu
Domaine François Merlin, Jeanraude, Condrieu, Rhône, France, 2021
This has some strength of aroma and power on the palate, with pêche de vigne running throughout. Very good length, the alcohol is just a touch noticeable. Full-bodied, with a gently oily texture. One of the more powerful Condrieu this year, with a saline, cleansing finish. From an east-facing vineyard that buts up against Château-Grillet. Spends a year in barriques and 500-litre demi-muids, from new to three-year-old oak. 800 bottles produced.
2021
Domaine François MerlinCondrieu
Domaine Garon, La Vieille Maison, Condrieu, Rhône, France, 2021
Ripe and inviting, honeyed and tropical on the nose. Nutty with toasty oak and apricot crumble, full-bodied with a lush, silky mouthfeel underpinned with fresh acidity.
2021
Domaine GaronCondrieu
E Guigal, La Doriane, Condrieu, Rhône, France, 2021
A compelling, pure and complex nose combining jasmine, cedar, peach and nutmeg. Good acidity and cut, with huge impact on the palate – a real explosion of flavour. Very long, ending on lingering wood spice; a Condrieu that demands rich food. A blend of Guigal’s five best parcels of Condrieu (including Coteau de Chéry and Côte Chatillon), aged for 12 months in new oak barriques.
2021
E GuigalCondrieu
Stéphane Ogier, La Combe de Malleval, Condrieu, Rhône, France, 2021
Gorgeously fresh peach and blanched almond on the nose and palate, with a touch of lemon verbena. Full-bodied but not fat, with great energy. The alcohol is low, and there's good acidity, no overt oaking, good line and length. The perfect balance, and very classic, I'd drink this young. All in Stockinger demi-muids, 50% new; you don't notice the new oak, it works extremely well. Just 12.5% ABV.
2021
Stéphane OgierCondrieu
Vignoble de Boisseyt, Les Corbonnes, Condrieu, Rhône, France, 2021
<p>A beautifully floral style of Condrieu, with jasmine and violets. Underneath there's fresh-cut pear. It's full-bodied, rich and opulent on the palate, with tremendous extract and concentration. Driving, intense salty finish.</p>
2021
Vignoble de BoisseytCondrieu
Domaine François Merlin, Côte-Rôtie, Rhône, France, 2021
Introverted on the nose, then very powerful and concentrated on the palate. The muscular, rounded tannins are a Brune-side calling card, which are further buttressed by plentiful firm, dry oak tannins. It’s long and powerful but fresh, with enough piercing acidity to propel this long into the future. A mineral edge brings further freshness and texture. Grown on lieu-dit Montlys, aged for 18 months in four- to nine-year-old barriques and demi-muids. 4,000 bottles produced.
2021
Domaine François MerlinCôte-Rôtie
Domaine Garon, Le Combard, Côte-Rôtie, Rhône, France, 2021
Much more interesting than most 2021s on the nose, there's an oregano note behind the rose and tobacco-scented fruit – very typically Côte Blonde. Smooth tannins are very well worked and fine. It has great aromatics and textural finesse, a standout wine of the vintage. From the sharply sloping lieu-dit Le Combard, where there are blonde soils. Fermented in stainless steel then aged in barriques for 18 months.
2021
Domaine GaronCôte-Rôtie
Domaine JP Jamet, Côte Brune, Côte-Rôtie, Rhône, France, 2021
A gorgeous nose, that’s so floral, like a rose. It’s silky and approachable already. A drier impression than a typical year but it shows great freshness and energy. Well balanced acidity, no greenness here, but it's just-ripe. Not as long as some years, but it’s precise and more friendly than most 2021s. It’s very much about the florals. One of the oldest parcels, and they found no rot here, unlike most others. It’s constant in quality, impressive even in complicated years. Whole-bunch fermented, matured in old demi-muid. No La Landonne will be made in 2021.
2021
Domaine JP JametCôte-Rôtie
Domaine JP Jamet, Côte-Rôtie, Rhône, France, 2021
A tasting of component barrels for this wine made for an instructive view of the vintage. Certain sites show the lightness of the vintage, fresh and peppery. Others, such as Bonnivières and Tartaras, exhibited the rigid, austere tannins that are quite common in 2021. Few barrels had great concentration or generosity of fruit; this is a vintage about structure and minerality rather than concentration or fruit sweetness. I would be inclined to leave this for a substantial amount of time before broaching, around 2031, by which time it should show good complexity and terroir expression, and may well be worthy of a higher score. All whole-bunch fermented, and matured mostly in old demi-muids.
2021
Domaine JP JametCôte-Rôtie
Domaine Rostaing, Côte Blonde, Côte-Rôtie, Rhône, France, 2021
Relatively pale this year. It shows a floral expression of violets, and in the mouth it’s light-bodied, fresh and with good acidity. The tannins are much friendlier than La Landonne, it's quite a light and gentle Côte Blonde this year, but the balance is good even if the concentration is fairly light. This will drink well young. It saw four weeks in tank, 18 months in oak, using limited new oak, natural yeasts, and as many stems as possible. The only single-vineyard bottlings in 2021 will be La Landonne and Côte Blonde - and that's if they are not eventually blended into Ampodium.
2021
Domaine RostaingCôte-Rôtie
E Guigal, La Turque, Côte-Rôtie, Rhône, France, 2021
This is very much on the perfumed, rose-like side of La Turque, along with characteristic star anise, nutmeg, and cinnamon spice, partly from the oak. It’s relatively light in body and concentration this year, but does have a good sense of freshness. More char and spice on the finish, along with vanilla pod. This year it’s actually quite light in tannins, and they are very fine. No hints of greenness, it’s fine and neat. It will be ready relatively early, and is not a vintage for long ageing. Low alcohol. At the beginning of its long maturation in 100% new oak barriques.
2021
E GuigalCôte-Rôtie
M Chapoutier, La Mordorée, Côte-Rôtie, Rhône, France, 2021
Very classically Côte-Rôtie in aroma, there's juniper and forest berries, and a touch of balsamic. Rounded, generous, but not overly ripe or full-bodied. Fine tannins and good acidity make this very well balanced. The oak is well integrated and well applied. There’s great finesse here, it’s one of their best vintages yet. Showing a mineral, graphite finish. Blend of lieu-dit Côte-Blonde and lieu-dit Côte Brune.
2021
M ChapoutierCôte-Rôtie
M Chapoutier, Neve, Côte-Rôtie, Rhône, France, 2021
A fresh, aerial, violet-scented style, though it’s introverted for now. It has exceptionally fine tannins – very similar to La Viallière in style. It’s well balanced, the acidity is high and the tannins are quite generous. A mineral style. Lieu-dit Neve, south of La Viallière, rocky mica schist soils.
2021
M ChapoutierCôte-Rôtie
