Which offers more pleasure: a wine from a great vintage, but too young, inexpressive and closed? Or a wine from a modest vintage that’s mature, aromatically open and ready to drink? Surely there’s no contest.
When it comes to enjoying the greatest Rhône wines, identifying the best vintages is the easy part. Knowing when best to open them is more difficult – but arguably more important.
Here are four vintages that will benefit from further ageing, and four that you should consider drinking up.
Four to lay down: 2015, 2013, 2010, 2005
Four to drink up: 2014, 2011, 2008, 2004
Four vintages to lay down
2015
Indisputably a great vintage for northern Rhône reds, but while most 2015 Crozes-Hermitage and some St-Josephs are ready to go, wines from the best terroirs still have many years before they reach their full potential. I would wait another couple of years for top St-Joseph, Cornas and entry-level Côte-Rôtie, and until the mid-2030s for top Côte-Rôtie and Hermitage.
This is a very good vintage in the southern Rhône: ripe and sunny, and the wines are quicker to mature. Vacqueyras is largely drinking well, but some will benefit from another year or two before they reach peak drinking. The best wines of Gigondas and Châteauneuf will only start hitting their stride from 2028.
2013
A disappointing vintage across much of France, but the northern Rhône fared relatively well. The year got off to a slow start due to a cool, wet spring which made for an extended growing season and a late harvest. The resulting reds often have forthright acidity and robust tannins that need time to soften.
A tasting last year with Jean-Louis Chave of his 2012, 2013 and 2014 Hermitage demonstrated just how far behind 2013 is compared to the vintages on either side.
The southern Rhône endured a similar growing season, but the wines need even longer to soften: the cool spring led to severe coulure in the Grenache, so blends tend to feature atypical quantities of Syrah and Mourvèdre, further bolstering their rugged frames.
Though many wines are beginning to enter their drinking windows, most need longer than they might in an average year, so you’d be wise to leave your Gigondas, Châteauneuf, Hermitage and top Côte-Rôtie for a few more years before opening.
2010
There wasn’t a huge crop in 2010, but quality throughout the Rhône, both north and south, was outstanding. After 13 years, you’d hope that these would be ready to drink by now, but I’m continually surprised at how long these wines are taking to come round.
Reds from the southern Rhône are beginning to open up, including many Châteauneufs, but most 2010s I’ve encountered recently will continue to improve for a long time yet.
If you enjoy wines with plenty of primary fruit and dramatic tannins, you might want to start opening them now as their complexity begins to develop. But I’d advise waiting another two or three years for most top southern Rhônes, and at least the same if not a little longer for top northern Rhônes. I won’t be opening any 2010 Hermitage until 2030.
2005
Like 2013, the 2005 growing season took its time to warm up. What followed was a very hot, dry summer, making for powerful, driving, structured wines that are proving remarkably unhurried.
Though most southern Rhônes have now comfortably entered their drinking windows, I’m still encountering wines today that would benefit from more time in bottle, such as Clos des Papes and Moulin de la Gardette’s Ventabren.
Even the most stubborn northern Rhônes are beginning to open up now, but for those who enjoy the unique flavours and textures of old wines, 2005 is a vintage you can confidently keep in the cellar for many years to come.
Four vintages to drink now
2014
A fairly recent vintage, but one that’s drinking well already. The year got off to a promising start, but then the season was hampered by a wet summer, then rain again at harvest. It produced a lighter style of red. Less promising terroirs delivered reds that were lean and green, but superior sites turned out wines with finesse and refreshing drinkability.
In the south, Gigondas fared well (for producers such as Moulin de la Gardette, Domaine Les Semelles de Vent, and Mas des Restanques); some Châteauneufs were also very good (from Clos des Papes, Rotem & Mounir Saouma, and Henri Bonneau). In the north, Cornas fared well, with Guillaume Gilles, Matthieu Barret and Alain Voge all making very fine examples.
Red wines are lighter in 2014, but it’s an exceptional year for whites. No hurry to drink the more ageworthy styles; Jean-Louis Chave’s white Hermitage should drink well until 2060 and beyond.
2011
A reasonable vintage in the southern Rhône, but one without any great structure or focus, so this is a good candidate to pull from the cellar if you have any.
It was better in the north, the damp, cool summer making for wines with energy and precision rather than concentration. Cornas, Hermitage and top Côte-Rôtie are largely drinking well now, and the best should continue to do so for the next five to 10 years.
2008
A notoriously difficult vintage throughout the Rhône Valley, cool and wet in both the north and south, with damp conditions during harvest. Reds lack ripeness and depth, and most were best drunk young – few will have gained much interest with age. If you have any left, drink up.
No vintage is without its successes however, so keep an open mind. If a wine shows poorly on opening, try decanting for an hour or two before you give up all hope. Recent 2008s that have impressed are Domaine Gonon’s neat and drinkable St-Joseph and Domaine de la Janasse’s deliciously complex Châteauneuf-du-Pape Vieilles Vignes.
2004
A vintage that delivered a crop of enjoyably crisp and precise reds in both the northern and southern Rhône, but not always the most ripe or generous – as with 2014, some lacked depth and power. If you have any left in your collection, now is the time to pull the corks.
The situation is different for white wines, however – 2004 is a great year for whites throughout the Rhône. The best Châteauneuf and white Hermitage will continue to offer beautiful drinking and great complexity for many years to come.
To lay down or drink up?
The wines below are listed by their vintage, in the same order as above.
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