Step away from the damp, cold weather in the UK and enter the warm Rhone Valley for a while, one of the oldest wine regions in France.
We have, over recent years, had a fickle relationship with France but from a buyers point of view no other region in France produces such variety from such a diverse range of grape varieties, thirteen to be precise. From the light fruity Cotes du Rhone wines in the south to the rich, deep, heavy long-lived Hermitage and Cornas wines of the north.
In past years Cotes du Rhone wines were generally thin, dilute and definitely not value for money but now with big competition from the Aussie Shiraz, the forward-thinking Rhone producers are keen to innovate, and their hands-on approach has certainly helped this ‘born again’ region start a new life.
Now, if you have never really discovered Rhone wines or you are one of those, ‘never touch French wine’ people, then I urge you to think or should I say drink again, especially if you are a red wine drinker as over 90% of what the Rhone produce is red. Furthermore, if it’s a big hearty red by the fire wine you are looking for then its hard to beat.
Yours in Wine
Ruth Yates.
Last updated: December 02, 2007