Our first full day in the northern Rhone was cold and very rainy – a complete change from the perfect weather we enjoyed in Provence. Our palates were ready for action as we rolled in to Domaine Georges Vernay, one of the top producers in Condrieu. We were met by Paul Amsellem, Mr. Vernay’s son-in-law, and Stephen Murray-Sikes, a wine broker who is based in Beaune. We tasted through a range of their finished wines; the lineup was quite impressive.

This is a 4-5 hectare family domaine in Ampuis. We were met by Bernard Levet’s wife and daughter, who brought us down to the cave for a tasting of 2006 and 2005 barrel samples. This was my first experience with this producer, and I found the wines to be quite impressive. Wines that are sold in the US are 100% destemmed, at the request of US importer Neal Rosenthal. I will be looking for this domaine’s 2005s when they hit the market.

This was a big hit during last year’s trip, and I was happy to discover that this restaurant is still in top form. Perched in the hills high above Cote-Rotie, Auberge de la Source has a spectacular panoramic view of the Rhone river and Cote-Rotie region. Even in the pouring rain, the view was incredible. The food was hearty and delicious; I had a Nicoise salad, hearty veal stew with noodles, and a small bowl of freshly picked cherries, all for under 20 Euro.

This was my second visit to this 5 hectare family domaine. Aromatically the wines were all interesting, but they tasted very tart and underripe. I thought the wines showed much better last year.

We finished up with a late afternoon tasting appointment with the entertaining and charismatic Robert Jasmin. These wines were all new to me; they are very structured and built to age. I loved them all at first, but by the end they were starting to taste too acidic. I would like to retaste the 2005 and 2006 once in bottle to check on the acid balance. From a ripe year like 2003, this seems like a good bet.

Pic Bistro is the casual modern bistro restaurant attached to Maison Pic. It has a decidedly different, more modern vibe than its older sibling, and the food is delicious. At dinner we were all remarking that if Pic Bistro were located in one of our hometowns, it would be one of the top restaurants in town. I ordered the tasting menu of carrot veloute soup with fried escargots, a roti de veau with mashed potatoes, and a small salad/cheese plate, which were all excellent.