Walls: Top-quality and great-value Côte-Rôtie alternatives

When a grape variety is given time to ripen slowly and gradually, it develops its aromas one by one. The grape has time to listen to those aromas, to remember them all, layering them like tints in a watercolour. When there is no race for ripeness, a grape can meander through non-fruit aromas, the subtle tones of flowers, spices and herbs that speak more of a place than of simply a grape variety. This is why we love Syrah from the northern apex of the Rhône Valley : Côte-Rôtie. I’d drink it every day if it wasn’t so bloody expensive. Scroll down for tasting notes and scores for Matt Walls' Côte-Rôtie alternatives [subscriber-content] Why Côte-Rôtie is so expensive It’s hardly surprising that prices for Côte-Rôtie are so high. At just over 300ha, the vineyard area is a quarter of the size of Saint-Joseph, and working the rickety terraces is highly labour intensive. The demand is high for the captivating style it produces. What is this style, exactly? It is a particularly aromatic style of Syrah, typified by violets and a subtle smoky spice. On the palate, the black olive tapenade character with its addition of rosemary, thyme and juniper appears first, before the forest berry fruits. It is a cool, transparent style of wine with a finely-etched tannic frame and moderate alcohol. These are wines that have a natural affinity for whole bunch fermentation and oak ageing . [caption id="attachment_457667" align="alignnone" width="630"] Rickety terraced vineyards in Côte-Rôtie are labour intensive[/caption] Thanks to Syrah’s unique adaptability , there are similar styles of wine to enjoy at lower prices if you know where to look. Finding Côte-Rôtie alternatives close to home Unsurprisingly, the most abundant hunting ground for Côte-Rôtie alternatives is close to the appellation itself. When it comes to the drawing of appellation boundaries, bureaucrats are fallible and vines don’t observe them anyway. There are some beautiful slopes in and amongst those classified as Côte-Rôtie that have instead been placed under the generic Côtes-du-Rhône appellation. The quality can be excellent here, the wines are very similar in style to Côte-Rôtie, and they can offer great value for money. Domaine Jamet’s Côte-du-Rhône is the obvious example. There are many excellent IGP Collines Rhodaniennes Syrahs grown nearby, like in the enclave of Seyssuel, on the opposite bank to Côte-Rôtie. Grown on the same sloping schistous soils, some of these are the mirror image of their more famous neighbour. Saint-Joseph is also an area where great alternatives can be found. It is not only a larger appellation than Côte-Rôtie, but it is also much longer, stretching 50km north to south. It rarely states on the label where the fruit is grown, but if you know it’s from the northern end of the appellation, you’re more likely to get a brisk, aromatic expression of Syrah. Investigate those made by winemakers based in and around Ampuis and Condrieu. The best grown Saint-Josephs of Chavanay can bear a marked resemblance to Côte-Rôtie. While the southern part of Saint-Joseph, Cornas and Hermitage tend to produce denser styles of Syrah, the granite-born Crozes-Hermitage wines grown north of Hermitage can also please lovers of the more aerial Syrahs from further north. Finding Côte-Rôtie alternatives further afield Further still, even outside France, there are winemakers producing Syrahs from cooler climates that can slake a thirst for Côte-Rôtie. South Africa is your best bet, particularly Elgin, Elim, Bot River and cooler sites in Stellenbosch and Swartland. It’s a similar story in Australia, with Yarra Valley and Adelaide Hills producing some highly elegant Syrahs. California and Washington are players too, but when it comes to price these usually match, or even exceed, those from the Northern Rhône. From New Zealand, examples from Hawke’s Bay tend to be the most affordable. Delicious though many are, they don’t often have the deeply savoury character and herbal aromatics that makes Côte-Rôtie so distinctive, but Trinity Hill, Elephant Hill and Bilancia are all good options. For whatever reason, finding this style of Syrah in South America is rare. And perhaps surprisingly this is also the case for the rest of Europe. But there are several striking Syrahs coming out of Germany now, and with climate change no doubt more will follow. A Côte-Rôtie style beyond Syrah Why stop at Syrah? There are other grape varieties that can deliver a similar flavour profile. I would suggest Mencia. Grown in Northern Spain on the slate, schist and granite soils in Bierzo and the steep, terraced slopes of Ribera Sacra, it produces fresh and precise wines. They tend to have a mineral core, a slim, upright frame and aromatic herb, flower and berry notes. Remind you of anything? I am sure the producers mentioned in this piece are not aiming to copy Côte-Rôtie like for like. But I doubt they would be offended by the comparison. There’s only one place, however, that truly makes wines that taste of Côte-Rôtie. And that’s Côte-Rôtie. [/subscriber-content] 14 Côte-Rôtie alternatives: [wine-collection] You may also like: Côte-Rôtie 2019 report 10 exciting Rh ô ne producers to try Hidden gems: Domaine Burgaud producer profile

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Walls: Top-quality and great-value Côte-Rôtie alternatives

Scroll down for tasting notes and scores for Matt Walls’ Côte-Rôtie alternatives

14 Côte-Rôtie alternatives:

You may also like:

Côte-Rôtie 2019 report

10 exciting Rhône producers to try

Hidden gems: Domaine Burgaud producer profile

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