Wine Icons: Domaine de Thalabert Crozes-Hermitage

I spent what felt like ages but was probably a mere five minutes trying to work out if I could make a joke out of ‘when is a Hermitage not a Hermitage? When its a Crozes-Hermitage!’ but alas I my funny bone failed me. But the conundrum stands: while they share a name, the wines are in general markedly different.

The French (and indeed the rest of Europe) have a tendency to append famous sites to other vineyards nearby, to attempt to bathe the latter in the former’s reflected glory. Hence growers in Puligny and Chassagne decided to add the name from the nearby Grand Cru vineyard ‘Le Montrachet’ to their villages. And looking at their fortunes they were probably right to do so. The Bordelais are particularly keen: think Lalande-Pomerol and Pomerol, or the numerous St Émilion satellites: Montagnes-St-Émilion, St. George-St-Émilion, Puisseguin-St-Émilion and Lussac-St-Émilion (those are not as successful, but enough for the unwary to declare they have a bottle of St. Émilion and be believed by those equally as unknowing).

And while I cannot claim to know for certain the naming of Crozes-Hermitage was as cunning, it would be logical to infer it given the usual proclivities. The difference as ever comes back to that most French of concepts: terroir. Hermitage vineyards occupy a tiny area on the steep slopes of Hermitage hill, rising up from the banks of the Rhône river. Crozes-Hermitage is much larger, its vineyards lie on the flatter sites surrounding the hill, and have a mixture of aspects and soils.

Both use the same grape varieties: Syrah for the reds, and Marsanne, Roussane and Viognier for the whites, but the steep slopes and granite soils of Hermitage result in wines of much greater concentration, complexity and longevity than those of Crozes. Of course this is reflected in the price. Hermitage with its much smaller production and its patchwork of single-vineyard offerings command high prices justifiably, while Crozes for the most part is significantly more affordable, but in a lighter, more forward style. In some ways that is a good thing: waiting for a monolithic, obdurate Hermitage from a good vintage is akin to waiting for Godot. It takes a long time to arrive and when you finally do pull the cork there is always the question mark in the back of the mind, ‘have I waited long enough?’.

And here, quite simply, is where Domaine de Thalabert fits in. Domaine is a bit of a misnomer, or at least it is not a domaine in the Burgundian sense of the word. Rather it is a 40 hectare vineyard owned by Hermitage royalty Maison Paul Jaboulet Aîné. They bought the vineyard, both the largest and oldest in Crozes, in 1834, when the AOC was still a twinkle in region’s collective eye (it was not classified officially until 1937). At that time and really up to the 1980s the northern Rhône was mostly négociant-dominated, so growers generally sold their crops, and few were estate vinified and bottled. Jaboulet was one of those few producers bottling their wines (as well as being négociants themselves) and since then has always been one of the region’s leading lights.

Based in Tain L’Hermitage Jaboulet’s reputation is mostly forged on their prodigious Hermitages (they own around 24 hectares on the hill, one of the largest holdings), including a wine that has gone down in legend, the 1961 La Chapelle Hermitage. If it comes up for auction collectors and sommeliers the world over will beat a path to secure some of this most mythical of wines, and it commands prices of around £10,000 a bottle. I can only dream of ever tasting it.

But alongside Jaboulet’s heavyweights, Thalabert has been quietly and consistently producing outstanding wines, and wines that seem to straddle the puissance of Hermitage with its remarkable intensity and longevity with the lighter, early-drinking joie-de-vivre of Crozes. Simply put, it the best of both worlds.

As mentioned Crozes-Hermitage is a large region and as such has a variety of micro-climates and soil types that create a tapestry of different terroirs. Thalabert undoubtedly occupies of the finest, with low terraces of stony soils from glacial deposits that feature galets roulés (rolled pebbles) similar to those of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. These trap heat during the day and release it back at night, extending the ripening. By dint of it being the oldest vineyard in Crozes, it also is home to its oldest vines, many older than 80 years and more. Now the picture forms why this domaine is able to transcend it AOC to the extent that it does, combined with the deftness of Jaboulet’s winemaking.

Around 17,000 cases are produced each year meaning is it is widely available and won’t cost you the earth. Casting my eyes around the net expect to pay around £80-£120 per six in bond depending on the maturity. It is hand-harvested (quite an endeavour for a vineyard so big) and manually sorted before a traditional vinification with 100% destemming. That is followed by a 3 week maceration with regular pumping-over, malolactic fermentation and a portion aged in new oak for 12-18 months, vintage-dependant.

And the results can be simply sublime. You can do some DIY and drink it young but it is also capable of prodigious ageing. Jaboulet have examples from the 1980s still in their library they say are still drinking, and an ex-colleague of mine and Master of Wine Matthew Hemming bought a 1976 at auction and told us it was stunning and still fresh. There is a review of the 1990 on Jancis Robinson’s site describing it as ‘glossy, true, liquorice and leather but with wonderful fruit still. Enormous complexity’. There are plenty of merchants offering more mature examples but most will offer the latest vintage during their Rhône en primeur campaigns, usually around £100 per six in bond. Young examples are going to be full of forward black cherry, red berry fruit, meat jus and woodsmoke with fleshy tannins and a medium-to-full-bodied velvety mouthfeel. As it ages those smoky characteristics will accentuate with gamey, leathery nuances developing as well as hints of ferrous and sous-bois. A wonderful wine and certainly one to have in the collection.

The 7 hectare wildlife reserve at the heart of the Thalabert vineyard

Paul Jaboulet Aîné was sold to the Frey family in 2006. For a myriad of reasons the estate had stagnated somewhat and their new stewardship breathed fresh life into the venerable maison. Growers in the Rhône are keenly aware of the march of climate change and the Freys have converted the vineyards to full organic farming. Within the vineyards of Thalabert they maintain a 7 hectare wildlife preserve, bursting with biodiversity and, as the above photograph illustrates, bees. This is part of the French Bird Protection League (or LPO) intiative for organisations to create and maintain nature refuges and is the first of its kind in the Drôme, and includes the beautiful ruin of Clos Gounon, its forest and a meadow. If you are in the region its well worth a visit.

Written by A James Cole