Rhone Valley Reds Are On a Roll

The Rhone Valley is on a roll. Since 1998 the French appellation has experienced a string of superlative harvests that most other regions can only dream of.

Couple that with affordable prices, particularly for wines from the south of the valley, and you have a Côtes du Rhône appellation that is gaining widespread consumer recognition, especially in the New World.

Unlike the northern Rhone, where syrah is the star performer, the grenache grape dominates in the south. Grenache is the second most widely planted grape in the world, and one perfectly suited to the hot, dry and windy climate of the southern Rhone Valley.

In the same fashion that cabernet and merlot balance each other in a typical Bordeaux blend, in the southern Rhone the high-alcohol, high-toned, raspberry fruit flavours of grenache are tempered by the drier, leaner, spicy syrah.

France's complex appellation system allows 24 varietals to be grown in the Côtes du Rhône, but those most likely to make it into the blend these days are grenache, cinsault, counoise, mourvèdre and carignan.

My reviews today include a pair of basic Côtes du Rhône bottles, three labels with more refined "villages" designations, and a Gigondas -- one of two highly rated specific villages (Vacqueyras is the other) that have their own appellation.

The appellation "Côtes du Rhône Villages" specifies a delimited area that has exceptional terroir and where producers must adhere to stricter rules for yields, alcohol content and varietals used.

About 85 per cent of Côtes du Rhône Villages wines come with the name of a specific village appended -- names like Cairanne, Rasteau, Vinsobres and Séguret.

Typically, those vineyards are on the hillsides above the villages, and they naturally produce more intense, longer-lived wine than the vines on the valley floor.

All of today's picks are suitable for holiday entertaining, or for the big dinner itself. Enjoy.

The Delas 2000 Saint Esprit offers an exotic mix of raspberry, earth, orange rind and chocolate aromas. It tastes much like it smells, with round textures and gobs of attractive, high-toned fruit flavours. It has fine density and weight -- quite an improvement over previous versions. Drink now through 2004. This is good value.

Burgundian négociant Antonin Rodet offers a number of Rhone labels, including the Rodet 2001 Côtes du Rhône Rouge. Look for an open sweaty/leather nose with undertones of earth and compost. There are plenty of black fruit and raspberry flavours here, with a soft, round finish streaked and hints of slightly cooked fruit. This solid, ready-to-drink offering is excellent value.

The Jérôme Quiot 2000 Côtes du Rhône Villages St. Gervais is one of those village wines that stand above the crowd. At St. Gervais, the vineyards are mostly 35-year-old vines -- 60 per cent are grenache; the rest are evenly split between syrah and carignan. Look for an intense peppery, spicy, meaty nose with black cherry fruit aromas. This is a foursquare spicy, peppery affair, with anise and raspberry flavours. A perfect partner to terrines, red meats and cheese.

Cécile Chassagne 1999 Côtes du Rhône Villages Séguret is another 60/20/20 village blend, but this time the grapes are grenache, mourvèdre and syrah. I think you'll love its brooding, dark, black-fruit nose, game highlights and a bit of chocolate, all spiced with pepper. The entry is smooth, but the mid-palate is substantial with chunky tannins and alcohol, and it has a fabulous black raspberry and anise finish. It should keep well for a couple of years, then really blossom. Turkey, duck and poultry would all pair well with this Séguret.

Paul Coulon produces the very fine Domaine de Beaurenard 1999 Côtes du Rhône Villages Rasteau, with its gamy, mineral, licorice, earthy and black cherry jam aromas. It has a rich, ripe and intense palate, with those same cherry jam, pepper and licorice flavours, and an earthy, prune plum finish. It still has some tannins to shed, but this is well balanced and long for a Rasteau.

The Delas 1999 Gigondas Les Reinages is a step back in time, to an older style of Rhone red with more gamy, sweaty/leather aromas and earth, as opposed to the newer, fruity style. It needs about 30 minutes of air to really open up in the glass. Round, soft and definitely ready to drink right now. This one is impressive and elegant.

RHONE VALLEY REDS

Producer: Delas Frères 2000 Saint Esprit, Côtes du Rhône Rouge

Price: $17.95

Stock No.: 123215729938

Score: 16/20

Comments: Raspberry, orange rind and chocolate.

Producer: Antonin Rodet 2001 Côtes du Rhône Rouge

Price: $13.95

Stock No.: 11373001792

Score: 15/20

Comments: Raspberry and licorice.

Producer: Jérôme Quiot 2000 Côtes du Rhône Villages St. Gervais

Price: $18.95

Stock No.: 3345120000958

Score: 16.5/20

Comments: Foursquare spicy fruit and anise.

Producer: Cécile Chassagne 1999 Côtes du Rhône Villages Séguret

Price: $18.95

Stock No.: 813507000561

Score: 16.5/20

Comments: Dark, brooding chocolate fruit.

Producer: Domaine de Beaurenard, 1999 Côtes du Rhône Villages Rasteau

Price: $29.95

Stock No.: 3368882100018

Score: 16.5/20

Comments: Black cherry spice and licorice.

Producer: Delas Frères 1999 Gigondas Les Reinages

Price: $37.95

Stock No.: 123215629931

Score: 17/20

Comments: Elegant, smoky and earthy.