Rhone Vignobles In Hong Kong

The Rhone Vignobles were in town yesterday to showcase the group’s wines at a tasting in French brasserie Agnes b yesterday with fifteen domaine’s in attendance sowing mostly their 2011 vintages for the local wine trade. Many of the wineries are, in fact, unrepresented here in the city but there were some excellent wines on show during the afternoon.

The Rhone Vignobles has been running for 17 years and brings together a group of wineries with the same passion for wine and an authentic respect of the terroir from which their wines are made. The group, one that could also be described as a ‘friendship’, aims to help promote each other and to display the versatility of Rhone Valley wines.

Within the Rhone Vignobles some of the wineries are organic and biodynamic, with some choosing to display this on their labeling and others choosing not to (maybe a sign that biodynamics and organics are still not an integral factor in the purchasing of wines to this day). Some are in the process of trailing biodynamic farming but, at the end of the day, they all share a common belief that the respect for their terroir is of paramount importance.

Put simply, Rhone Vignobles members refuse to be confined to one grape growing format but agree that they must be mindful and sensible, good eco-friendly citizens and that their soils need to be respected and their environment protected.

The most famous wines from the Rhone are, arguably, Chateauneuf du Pape, the notorious wine that permits thirteen grape varieties to be blended (but seldom is made up of all thirteen) but the region is also well known for its whites, Condrieu, Saint Peray and Crozes Hermitage. There were plenty of all on show with some great Cote Rotie and Crozes Hermitage reds also.

Most whites from the Rhone are made up of Viognier, Rusanne, Marsanne and Grenache blanc whilst reds are predominantly made up from Syrah, Mourvedre, Grenache and Cinsault and as with regions such as Burgundy, the names of the villages and appellations dominate the labeling as opposed to the grape varieties themselves.

After a full round of tasting we decided that we would tell you which wines we thought were the best of the show and, should you ever see them around town or while you are away on holiday, are wines that we highly recommend you give a try and wines that are truly reflective of the terroir from whence they came.

Our top whites were:

1      Domaine de Beaurenard Chateauneuf du Pape Blanc 2011

2      Domaine Graillot Crozes-Hermitage Blanc 2011

3      Domaine Francois Villard Le Grand Vallon Condrieu 2011

4      Domaine Alain Voge Saint Peray Terres Boisees 2011

5      Domaine de la Janasse Chateauneuf du Pape Blanc 2011

Our top reds were:

1      Domaine de Beaurenard Bosirenard Chateauneuf du Pape 2009

2      Domaine de la Janasse Cotes du Rhone Village ‘Terre d’Argile’ 2011

3      Domaine Graillot Crozes-Hermitage Rouge 2011

4      Domaine Yves Cuilleron Cote Rotie Terres Sombres 2010

5      Domaine Jean Michel Gerin Saint Joseph 2011

Domaine de Beaurenard wines are available in Hong Kong from Watson’s Wines, as are Domaine Graillot. Domaine Alain Voge is available from Bluetree Wines in the city.