Château-Grillet 2018

Château-Grillet is one of the smallest appellations in France, a single walled estate of about four hectares where vineyard, estate and appellation are the same thing.

The vineyard sits in an amphitheatre above the Rhône between Vérin and Saint-Michel-sur-Rhône, entirely enclosed by Condrieu, on 102 terraces held by dry-stone chaillées between roughly 150 and 250 metres. It is planted only to Viognier, on poor biotite granite sometimes overlaid with loess, into which the roots run deep for water; the slopes are too steep for machinery and are worked by hand by a team of four. The Neyret-Gachet family held the estate from 1827 until 2011, when Artémis Domaines, François Pinault's group, acquired it. A cellar built in 2012 allows the fifteen vineyard groups to ferment separately in tanks of only 6.5 hectolitres. The wine then spends about eighteen months on fine lees in a mixed cellar of barriques, 350-litre barrels, two demi-muids and an amphora, with new oak held to a small fraction each year. Production runs to roughly two thousand bottles.

Unusually for the variety, this rewards several years in bottle and drinks well from release through its first decade; serve at 10-12°C with roast poultry, scallops or a mild soft cheese.

*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.