Vivian Liang | September 14, 2019
Try Something New
The legendary Chave family have been crafting top quality, highly sought-after wines from the hill of Hermitage since the 15th century. Over the the years, the Chaves have been perfecting their farming skills, aiming at low yields, concentrating flavours from the grapes and a minimal intervention in the entire winemaking process.
One thing that often surprises me is that everyone’s attention focuses on the Hermitage Rouge, while their Hermitage Blanc is often overshadowed. The Blanc is a blend of century-old Marsanne (dominant component) from their Péléat monopole and a small amount of Roussanne. It is typically rather full bodied, with pronounced citrus and honeysuckle aromas, along with some peach, roasted hazelnuts and crushed stones characters. It has an opulent and generous mid-palate and a persistent finish.
This is a wine that tends to drink very well from bottling. It might shut down after 3-5 years, and then awaken after a decade or more with a more textured and complex character, heading towards a more honey-toned flavour spectrum. These are whites that can be enjoyed young or cellared for decades or more.
Over the past few months, we managed to build up a nice collection of this wine ranging from the fully mature vintage 2007 to a youthful vintage 2016. This is a not-to-miss line-up to taste through the evolution of this great white wine.
