Rhone on the rise: the wines from the southern part of the Rhone region offer value and romance

Cheers, March, 2005 by Jack Robertiello

The international wine market, especially the American, is not an especially happy place for French wine makers to be doing business these days. But it's not the residue of Iraq war sentiment that makes the U.S. so difficult; it's more likely a combination of booming Australian sales, steady Californian strength and expectations among consumers that prices remain low. For wines trying to break in here, making a name is tough.

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But a recent effort to highlight wines from the southern part of the Rhone valley has reminded restaurant operators that, beyond Bordeaux and Burgundy, there's a flood of great wines at good prices to be had from France.

The Rhone producers are calling these regions "The Newcomers," and winemakers from these areas--Cotes du Ventoux, Coteaux du Tricastin, Costiere de Nimes and Cotes du Luberon--are hoping that the popularity of their famous southern Rhone neighbor, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, combined with a lingering fascination with the lifestyle and attractions of southern France, will help them. They're also building on a multi-year promotional campaign in the U.S. for Rhone wines in general to make the way easier.

Of course, these regions are neither new to wine making nor to the U.S., although Tricastin and Ventoux only gained full appellation status in 1973, Nimes in 1986 and Luberon in 1988. But producers have been diligently updating wine making techniques and reducing yields while sticking to local grape varietals, instead of trying to cash in on the international merlot sweepstakes. In shedding their bulk wine producing reputations, these winemakers are finding that, like their brethren in Cotes-du-Rhone areas like Gigondas and Lirac, the natural advantages of climate and terroir can pay off.

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They have some other pluses to work with. It's among the lavender-edged fields and sun-baked streets of Provence where many college-age Americans first learned that local rose wines can be a perfectly refreshing summer treat, and that red wines tasting of black cherries, plums, herbs and spices can also have great acidity and backbone.

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Red wines from these four areas are made primarily from grenache and syrah, with the addition of some carignan, mourvedre and cinsault, depending on the appellation rules. Whites, a much smaller production and less frequently available in the U.S., are usually made with marsanne, rousanne, viognier, clairette and bourbolenc varietals.

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Among the producers, look for Chateau la Canorgue, especially for its Cotes du Luberon Rouge, as well as Chateau Val de Joanis Rouge and Les Griottes labels, from Cotes du Luberon. (Also try the tangy Val de Joanis rose.) From Costiere de Nimes, look for the reds and whites bottled under a variety of labels from Vignobles Michel Gassier; also try the Tradition label reds from Chateau de l'Or et de Gueules. From the Coteaux du Tricastin, especially good are the reds of Domaine de Grangeneuve; while from Cotes du Ventoux, try those of Chateau Pesquie, especially the Prestige and Quintessence lines, as well as the reds of Domaine de Cascavel.