The Winery Duvernay of Côtes-du-Rhône of Rhone Valley

President of Inter Rhône Philippe Pellaton put forward the body’s ambitious commercial strategy from now until 2035 at the Maison des Vins on 8th December. The Rhône Valley continues to make considerably more red wine than white and rosé, but Pellaton explained that reweighting the split of different colours will be one of their principal policies. Their intention is to increase production of white wines with a view to doubling shipments between now and 2031. ‘Historically, Rhône Valley Vineyard ...

In preparation for this column I tasted 46 reds in total, and – taking both quality and value into account – I can recommend 33 of them. Overall, the reds were less consistent than the whites, and although the lows were lower, the highs were higher. This tasting confirmed that it’s still possible to buy genuinely excellent northern Rhône reds for under £30 in the UK. That being said, it’s virtually impossible to find any Cornas, Côte-Rôtie or Hermitage for under £30 a bottle these days, but ther ...

Establishing a vineyard isn’t something you just rush into these days. Identifying the right site, carrying out soil analysis, selecting suitable rootstocks and varieties, procuring equipment… We’ve made a lot of progress in the past 80 years. But perhaps we overthink such things. Some estates, such as Domaine Font de Courtedune, have grown organically, with major decisions often being made for practical, rather than stylistic, reasons. And the results, from Côtes-du-Rhône to Châteauneuf-du-Pape ...