Domaine Alain Graillot - Crozes-Hermitage - Rouge - 2018 - Magnum

Antoine et Maxime Graillot, les fils d’Alain, supervisent désormais l’ensemble des vinifications de cette propriété, qui compte plus d’une vingtaine d’hectares et illustre depuis de nombreuses années le potentiel qualitatif de l’appellation Crozes-Hermitage, longtemps réduite à la production de vins simplement fruités. Installé au cœur de la plaine alluviale de purs galets et de graves de La Roche-de-Glun, le domaine produit des syrahs plus fines et plus structurées que la plupart de celles du secteur. La force des vins réside dans le plaisir immédiat qu’ils procurent, même s'ils sont capables de vieillir avec complexité sur dix ans.

This year, both of Alain's sons—Antoine and Maxime—were on hand when I visited the estate. As always, the red wines here are fermented with their stems. "It's the style of the winery," said Antoine. "And, it's easier. We're not always asking ourselves, 'Is it 20%, 40%?' It's always 100%." Not much changes here, but the brothers do say the wines are spending a little longer in vat both before and after spending a year in barrel. The 2017 reds will be bottled in March 2019. I tasted a couple of barrels, but as the selection for La Guiraude hadn't been made yet, I haven't reviewed the wines formally. Overall, they look bigger, richer and velvetier in texture than the more classic 2016s. "It's easy to make Guiraude," said Antoine. "It's easy to pick the best barrels. The challenge is to maintain the quality of the Crozes Hermitage."