Greal, Hermitage, and the keeper of the vines
Fearsomely complex, exquisitely concentrated, velvety smooth and extremely layered. It is Sorrel’s Le Greal: ‘the Grail’. The Rhone Valley’s most sought-after appellation, the hill of Hermitage, is a granite crag which – viewed from some angles – appears to be toppling the town of Tain over into the Rhone river. The hill is famed for some seriously long-lived reds, and even smaller amounts of full-bodied, intense, waxy whites. It’s not a big place; some Bordeaux estates are larger. But its wines have long enjoyed great prestige – and Le Greal is one of its very greatest.
At Domaine Sorrel, there is a new generation at the helm. 2019 marks Guillaume Sorrel’s first vintage in full control. Of course he’s been working at his father’s side for years, and for long has been the keeper of the vines – which is where the best vignerons will tell you a great wine is truly made, not in the cellar. So this is very much a seamless transition. After welcoming Guillaume to Uncorked last year for one of our best ever tastings, and being charmed by his easy intellect, we’re delighted to see him taking the domaine forward.
The most favoured climats on Hermitage lie at its western flank, where the vines look across the river. Greal is an assemblage of two climats here, Le Meal and Les Greffieux. Lower-lying Greffieux, on heavier clay soils, brings body and power; from limestone soils higher up the slope, Meal brings intense, refined aromatics. It is of course mainly Syrah planted here, but the inclusion in the Greal blend of 10% Marsanne brings an extra layer of lift, complexity and floral aromatics. Sorrel also release an extremely fine Hermitage blended from other sites on the hill, elegant, seamless and impactful in its own right. And the Rocoules white is a 90%-10% blend of Marsanne and Roussanne – Guillaume tells us it needs ten years from vintage to be at its best, though experience tells me it is in fact very hard to resist when young. /NT
Offered subject to confirmation; for shipment Spring 2022
