2015 Ferraton Père & Fils Crozes-Hermitage Les Calendes

JebDunnuck.com

• By Jeb Dunnuck
  France, Northern Rhône: The Blockbuster 2015s and Elegant 2016s, 1/24/2018, (See more on JebDunnuck.com...)

  (Ferraton Crozes-Hermitage Les Calendes) Login and sign up and see review text.

WineAlign

• By David Lawrason
  1/11/2018, (See more on WineAlign...)

  (Ferraton Les Calendes Crozes Hermitage, Ac red) Login and sign up and see review text.

• By Sara d'Amato
  1/5/2018, (See more on WineAlign...)

  (Ferraton Les Calendes Crozes Hermitage, Ac red) Login and sign up and see review text.

• By Michael Godel
  12/28/2017, (See more on WineAlign...)

  (Ferraton Les Calendes Crozes Hermitage, Ac red) Login and sign up and see review text.

• By John Szabo, MS
  12/19/2017, (See more on WineAlign...)

  (Ferraton Les Calendes Crozes Hermitage, Ac red) Login and sign up and see review text.

• By Josh Raynolds
  2015 Northern Rhônes: Outstanding Wines for the Long Haul (Apr 2017), 4/17/2017, (See more on Vinous...)

  (Ferraton Père & Fils Crozes-ermitage Calendes Red) Login and sign up and see review text.

Full Pull

• By Paul Zitarelli
  Full Pull Northern Rhone, 12/11/2017

  (Ferraton Crozes-Hermitage Rouge Les Calendes) Hello friends. We have a gorgeous set of Northern Rhone wines today from what may be an unfamiliar winery to our list members, but is very much a familiar owner/winemaker: Michel Chapoutier. We’ve extolled the virtues of Chapoutier’s Roussillon project – Bila-Haut – time and time again. Today we touch on another realm in this brilliant winemaker’s empire: Ferraton Père et Fils. Chapoutier began partnering with the Ferraton winery two decades ago, and then purchased the winery outright in 2004. Since then, quality has been on a slow-and-steady uptick, culminating in a fast-and-sudden additional uptick since the building of a new winery facility in 2013. It’s to the point where these wines now represent that rare bird: quality in the Northern Rhone at accessible pricing. The press has begun to notice, summed up nicely by James Molesworth’s article last year for Wine Spectator, and that has made these wines marginally more difficult to source. The main feature of today’s offer – a dynamite Crozes-Hermitage – wasn’t even being imported into Seattle. We had to ask for a special-order, and it arrived this week, just in time to offer up for the holidays. In addition we’ll offer two entry level Cotes du Rhones (one white, one red), and a special treat: an Hermitage six-plus years past vintage.Wine Advocate: Copyrighted material withheld. In my opinion, Crozes-Hermitage is the most uneven appellation in the Northern Rhone. I’m sure one of you who recently paid $35 for crap Saint-Joseph is shaking your head in disagreement right now, but I’d still argue that Crozes takes the cake for hit-or-miss bottles. It’s one of those appellations where there is simply no substitute for tasting to separate the wheat from the chaff. As you can see on the map, Crozes is an area in the crook of the neck made by the confluence of the Rhone and Isere rivers. While up to 15% Marsanne and Roussanne are allowed in red Crozes, this is 100% Syrah, entirely destemmed and aged in concrete. It clocks in at 13.5% listed alc and offers a lovely nose of plum sauce, black olive, and stony minerality; just the kind of savory/fruity mashup the northern Rhone does best. The outstanding 2015 vintage shines on the palate, offering its signature palate-staining goodness, its rich fruit paired to naughty brackish notes. Texturally, this fans out and saturates every square inch of the palate. It’s terrific Syrah for the tag, and a lovely pairing for many a winter braise or roast.