CHAVE HERMITAGE BLANC

Description

The Chave family has been making wine in the Northern Rhone since 1481 when the original Jean Louis Chave (the current head is also Jean Louis, the 25th of his name in the family) was granted vineyard land in what is now the St. Joseph appellation, by a nobleman named Farconnet. That land was around the town of Mauves just a few kilometres away from Tain l’Hermitage but on the opposite bank of the river, where they are still based today and continue to make their wines. The Chave family did not acquire any land on the hill of Hermitage until 1865, following the devastation caused by phylloxera.

The base for Chave’s Hermitage Blanc is a plot of century-old Marsanne vines in their Péléat monopole, with other elements from Rocoules, Hermite, and Maison Blanche. Each vineyard has a distinctive geological profile and as a result each plays a particular role in the overall expression of the wine. The wine is fermented entirely in oak barrels, the vast majority of which are neutral, and ages in oak for two years before release. The composition is the typical 80/20 Marsanne/Roussanne that most producers aim for.

“Another incredible white from this family is the 2019 Hermitage Blanc, a powerful, concentrated, and remarkably pure Hermitage that has laser-like focus as well as textbook Marsanne notes of quince, green almond, powdered rock, licorice, and spice. It’s still tight, focused, and inward at present, yet it reminds me of the 2018 with its purity and rare mix of power and elegance. It’s worth trying a bottle any time over the coming 3-5 years, but after that, I’d recommend waiting until after 2031.” – Jeb Dunnuck, 98 points