Jaboulet-Vercherre Côtes-du-Rhône Grenache-Syrah 2020

Syrah or shiraz, as Aussies like to call it, was first cloned many centuries ago in the northern end of the Rhone Valley wine region of France. Today the Cotes-de-Rhone wine district masterfully cultivates and blends wonderful clones of syrah, grenache and sometimes mourvedre to create silky, gorgeous mid weight wines. 2020 yielded an excellent fruit forward vintage, and this Jaboulet-Vercherre presents with wild cherries and pomegranate on the nose and plum, raspberries and mineraly, earthy notes on the palate! A delicious drop to match with hearty peasant based foods such as pork and fennel sausages served on a bed of creamy mash, topped with a red wine glaze. How perfect!

The grapes for the Jaboulet-Vercherre were cultivated from vines mostly over a half century old on ancient soils in the heart of the Côtes-du-Rhône district. Wine making in this region predates the Roman Empire and its rich soil and climate are ideal for producing rustic, fruit driven wines. Australia’s own Barossa and McLaren Vale regions often emulate this blended style. This example is a near 50/50 split of hand picked syrah and grenache fruit, slightly more elegant and rounded than most Aussie equivalents. Its colour is a lovely garnet and the tannins are silky smooth. Earthy notes lend to a rustic feel and makes it such a fabulous wine to pair with food. The silky tannins will lap up meats and fat and the lively, in-balance acid will accompany any sauce or glaze with grace.

You could cellar this wine until 2030 if you prefer your reds to develop some secondary character. But good luck with that as you won’t be able to keep your hands off the 2020 Jaboulet-Vercherre!

Popsy & JJ tasted and food matched February 2022

Glass

Bordeaux

Cellaring

Up to 10 years

Decanter

30+ minutes