2021 Crôzes-Hermitage, Vieilles Vignes de Gervans, Georges Lelektsoglou, Rhône

A noble black grape variety grown particularly in the Northern Rhône where it produces the great red wines of Hermitage, Cote Rôtie and Cornas, and in Australia where it produces wines of startling depth and intensity. Reasonably low yields are a crucial factor for quality as is picking at optimum ripeness. Its heartland, Hermitage and Côte Rôtie, consists of 270 hectares of steeply terraced vineyards producing wines that brim with pepper, spices, tar and black treacle when young. After 5-10 years they become smooth and velvety with pronounced fruit characteristics of damsons, raspberries, blackcurrants and loganberries. It is now grown extensively in the Southern Rhône where it is blended with Grenache and Mourvèdre to produce the great red wines of Châteauneuf du Pape and Gigondas amongst others. Its spiritual home in Australia is the Barossa Valley, where there are plantings dating as far back as 1860. Australian Shiraz tends to be sweeter than its Northern Rhône counterpart and the best examples are redolent of new leather, dark chocolate, liquorice, and prunes and display a blackcurrant lusciousness. South African producers such as Eben Sadie are now producing world- class Shiraz wines that represent astonishing value for money.

Originally from Greece, Georges Lelektsoglou is part of the furniture in and around the Rhône Valley. He once worked as a Courtier de Campagne, looking for bulk wines for the likes of Guigal and Chapoutier, when he started making his own personal selections of wines to celebrate the birth of his eldest son in 1983. His wife's family was part of the co-operative and owned a historic vineyard in Larnage. Along with the Cave de Tain, they produced a quality Crozes-Hermitage in ’83 that was a great commercial success. When he found exceptional bottles of wines, Georges also offered them to some of France’s most celebrated, Michelin-starred restaurants, including Troisgros, Chapel, Bocuse and Gagnaire.