Domaine Yves Cuilleron Saint Joseph 'Les Pierres Sèches' Syrah 2024

Domaine Yves Cuilleron Saint Joseph 'Les Pierres Sèches' Syrah is a bright, peppery red built for drinking young.

Dry stone walls hold the terraces together across this stretch of the northern Rhône, and the cuvée borrows their name. Several parcels inside the appellation go into the blend, all Syrah, hand-picked, partly destemmed and raised in barrel before bottling.

Crisp red fruits and black pepper lead a balanced, supple palate that keeps its freshness to the finish. Serve at 15-16°C alongside veal with chanterelles and sautéed new potatoes, or a simple steak.

*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.

Type: Red Wine
Style: Medium-bodied, dry
Grape Varietal: Syrah 100%
Tastes Like: Northern Rhône Syrah in its lighter, more approachable form
Alcohol Percentage: 12.5%
Closure: Diam (technical cork)
Size: 750mL
Appellation: Saint-Joseph AOP (Appellation d'Origine Protégée: France's protected appellation system; Saint-Joseph runs down the west bank of the Rhône from Chavanay in the north to near Valence, for reds from Syrah and whites from Marsanne and Roussanne)
Region: Saint-Joseph, northern Rhône, France
Terroir: The domaine's northern Saint-Joseph parcels on the hillsides around Chavanay, on shallow, sandy granite held up by dry-stone walls
Aging: 18 months in barriques
Serving Temperature: 15-17°C

Domaine Yves Cuilleron is a family estate at Chavanay, in the northern Rhône valley between Condrieu and Saint-Joseph. Yves's grandfather Claude Cuilleron founded it in 1920 and began bottling the wines in 1947; Yves's uncle Antoine took over in 1960, and Yves took charge in 1987 with just 3.5 hectares in Condrieu and Saint-Joseph. He made his first Côte-Rôtie in 1988, bought vines in Saint-Péray and Cornas in 2006 and in Crozes-Hermitage from 2012, and the domaine now makes wine across six of the northern Rhône's appellations. In 1996 Yves also co-founded Les Vins de Vienne with two neighbouring growers, Pierre Gaillard and François Villard.

Les Pierres Sèches comes from the domaine's northern Saint-Joseph parcels on the steep hillsides around Chavanay. The name means "dry stones", after the dry-stone walls that hold up the terraces, and the vines grow in shallow, sandy granite. The wine is aged for 18 months in barriques. It is the domaine's everyday Saint-Joseph red, a wine for the kind of hearty mountain and farmhouse cooking found on both sides of the Rhône.

Vegetarian: Savoyard baked potato pudding with prunes and raisins
Pork: Roast pork loin with sage and baked apples
Charcuterie: Rosette de Lyon, jambon de Savoie and cornichons
Poultry: Roast guinea fowl with chestnuts

Reblochon: Washed-rind cow's milk cheese from the Savoie mountains, a natural partner for a mountain dish
Rigotte de Condrieu: Small cow's milk cheese made just upriver from Chavanay
Tomme de Savoie: Mild, supple Alpine cheese that suits a lighter red
Bleu de Gex: Gentle blue from the Jura mountains

Farçon Savoyard (Savoie Potato Pudding with Prunes and Raisins)

Ingredients (Serves 6):

• 1.5kg floury potatoes, peeled
• 4 eggs
• 250mL full-cream milk
• 100mL thickened cream
• 12 pitted prunes, halved
• 60g raisins
• 2 tbsp plain flour
• 1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 40g butter, plus extra for the dish
• Salt and pepper

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C and butter a deep 2-litre ovenproof dish or loaf tin well.
2. Grate the raw potatoes coarsely, squeeze out as much liquid as you can in a clean tea towel and put them in a large bowl.
3. Whisk the eggs with the milk, cream, flour, nutmeg, 1 tsp salt and plenty of pepper, then stir into the potatoes with the prunes and raisins.
4. Spoon into the dish, dot with the butter, cover with foil and bake for 2 hours.
5. Uncover and bake for another 30 to 45 minutes until deep golden on top and firm when pressed.
6. Rest for 15 minutes, then turn out or cut into thick slices. Serve with a green salad.

Farçon is the slow-baked potato pudding of the Savoie mountains, made in every valley with its own mix of dried fruit and spice. A fresh, lighter Saint-Joseph Syrah has the acidity to lift the rich, buttery potato, while the prunes and raisins bring out the wine's depth.