How do you define a bad vintage? If you’re a grower, you might say it’s a year of poor weather, disease and pests. Low yields, even if quality is acceptable, means producers will be out of pocket. Wine lovers aren’t quite so concerned about conditions or quantity, however – it’s the quality in the bottle that matters most to us.
From anyone’s point of view, therefore, 2021 will not go down as a good Rhône vintage. ‘It’s the year you never wish for,’ said Jean Gonon of Domaine Gonon, with a degree of sangfroid, ‘but it happens.’
The difficulties can all be traced back to the night of 7 April, when temperatures dropped to -7°C. ‘Even my father never saw a frost this bad,’ said Pierre Rostaing of Domaine Rostaing in Côte-Rôtie, where the last serious frost episode was in 1938. In 2021, he lost 50% of his crop.
So far, so bleak. But in the darkness, there are glimmers of light. Certain frosted parcels carried lower crop loads as a result of the frost, helping them reach full ripeness.
Against the odds, there are some excellent wines. For those producers who made a success of the vintage – and ultimatley there were more than I expected – the style is one that many will find appealing: light, lean and fresh, with high acidity, refreshingly low alcohol and strict tannins – a counterweight to the rich and opulent 2018s and 2019s.
For white wine, it’s an exceptional, unmissable vintage in the southern and northern Rhône: one of great freshness, precision and longevity.
GOOD IN PARTS
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
A Resource for the World? - Argentina is unique in the genetic diversity preserved in much of its vine material. With climate change and disease posing increasing threats worldwide, Catena Zapata winery is asking what lessons can be learned to protect vineyards within and beyond the nation's borders
Argentina is unique in the genetic diversity preserved in much of its vine material. With climate change and disease posing increasing threats worldwide, Catena Zapata winery is asking what lessons can be learned to protect vineyards within and beyond the nation’s borders
Great Cabernets of South America
Other varieties may hog the limelight across South America, but the world’s most popular grape for red wines has played a critical role in the continent's wine heritage. We trace Cabernet Sauvignon’s story here, and recommend 16 benchmark wines to try
PROVENCE by train and bike
With rail links to Paris, Nice, Marseilles and beyond, a vast network of cycle paths and quiet roads, and a plethora of historic wine estates, Provence is an ideal destination for an eco-friendly, car-free and carefree) holiday
IN THE MIX
These days most of the world’s vineyards are planted to just a single variety, but what happens when multiple varieties are planted, harvested and blended together?
Malvasia A BUYER'S GUIDE
If ever a grape was hard to pin down, it'd be Malvasia. Indeed it’s not even a single grape variety. In all of its many varied, and often completely unrelated guises, it has been the mainstay of popular wine styles across the centuries. Our expert takes a closer look...
RIBERA ADOPTS THE NEW OLD WAYS
It’s not so much a new direction for winemakers in Ribera del Duero, but a growing recognition that traditional methods and wine styles set aside by the previous generation can now provide a way ahead to revitalise the region
Roussanne around the world
Up for a challenge? For winemakers as much as wine drinkers, getting a handle on a mercurial grape such as Roussanne isn't easy. But wherever it's grown, when the balance is right, it truly repays the effort
Napa Cabernet 2021
There's a lot of excitement about this vintage, in which conditions were relatively calm and temperatures stable through summer. Ongoing drought reduced yields but intensified flavours, but it means quantities are down and you may need to act fast to secure top wines. Our Napa correspondent selects 60 great wines from more than 500 that he tasted, with many very high scores
10 reason to discover Uruguay
Squeezed between Brazil and Argentina on the Atlantic coast, Uruguay has mostly flown under the tourist radar - until now. Once dubbed 'the Switzerland of the Americas', it's a welcoming country that has much to offer the travelling wine lover
Leo Erazo
The old vines and special terroir of Itata, southern Chile, have beena source of inspiration for this intrepid winemaker. The 2023 fires were a setback, but his commitment to this ancient wine land is undiminished
