Château-Grillet 2017

One of the very few appellations in France granted to a single property: 3.5 hectares of terraced granite planted to Viognier alone.

The estate lies on the right bank of the Rhône just south of Condrieu, in a south-facing amphitheatre of about a hundred drystone terraces between 150 and 200 metres above the river, on biotite granite of the kind also found in Condrieu's Coteaux de Vernon. Nothing can be mechanised on the slope. The Neyret-Gachet family held it for 184 years until François Pinault's Artémis Domaines bought the property in 2011, after which the walls were rebuilt, the vines retrained and the vineyard converted to biodynamic farming. A renovated cellar allows the crop to be pressed and fermented plot by plot in small tanks, with malolactic fermentation taken in vat or in barrel depending on the lot. Ageing runs about eighteen months across barriques, 350-litre casks, demi-muids and an amphora, with new oak held to a fifth or less.

Unusually for Viognier this is made to be cellared, and it rewards five to ten years. Serve at 10-12°C with lobster, roast chicken or a mild curry.

*Every effort is made to ensure the current vintage is accurate; however, variations can occur. If you are after a specific vintage, please contact us prior to ordering.