Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting from Barrel and from Bottle at Domaine Alain Graillot in Pont-de-l’Isère, Northern Rhône, with Maxime Graillot - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours led by Annette Schiller took place from October 13 - October 23. The tour started in Lyon and ended in Châteauneuf-du-Pap/ Avignon. There were 8 of us including Annette and me. 

The Rhône Valley is one of the oldest wine regions in France, and the second largest after Bordeaux. The Greeks introduced viticulture in the 4th century BC. Later the Romans came and brought viticulture to a different level. Since then the world has discovered Rhône wines and some of the most famous wines come from the Rhône Valley. The vineyards are located on both sides of the river. The Rhône Valley is divided into two distinctively different regions: the Northern Rhône and the Southern Rhône. 

 

For an overview see: Overview: Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours led by Annette Schiller - Facebook Day-by-day Postings 

 

Following:

Tasting in the Cellar at Cave Sébastien Blachon in Saint-Jean de Muzols, Northern Rhône, with Sébastien Blachon - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

we went to Domaine Alain Graillot in Pont-de-l'Isere, an estate well known to wine lovers throughout the world. Owner/ winemaker Maxime Graillot, who we had met earlier at 2941 Restaurant in Washington DC, gave us a comprehensive tour - vineyard, cellar, tasting - including tasting from barrel and from bottle. Several of us regarded the visit of Domaine Alain Graillot as the best of the whole Rhône Valley tour. The wines of Maxime Graillot are available in the USA through Elite Wines Laurent Givry. 

Domaine Alain Graillot in Pont-de-l’Isère, Northern Rhône

“The late Alain Graillot is well known to wine lovers throughout the world, and was universally regarded as one of the most talented producers not only in the Rhône, but in the whole of France... The quality of Graillot wines has become legendary, and he became the father-figure to a whole new generation of young Rhône producers. And if appellations such as Crozes-Hermitage and Saint-Joseph now offer some of the best wine values in the Rhône, it is in no little part thanks to Alain’s groundbreaking work”, I quote Elite Wines, American importer. 

This estate was founded by Alain Graillot in 1985 after he came back from working at Domaine Dujac in Burgundy. Today the domaine farms 55 acres of vineyards in Crozes-Hermitage and Saint-Joseph. Since 1985 Alain’s sons Maxime and Antoine run the domaine and continue to work as diligently as their father did: organic farming, manual harvest, whole-cluster fermentation and ageing the wines in 1- 3
year old barrels which they purchase from top Burgundy producers.

Alain Graillot/ Chambers&Chambers

Northern Rhône native, the late Alain Graillot is well-known to wine lovers throughout the world, and is universally regarded as one of the most talented Syrah producers not only in the Rhône, but in the whole of France. Prior to starting his own domaine, Alain worked in Burgundy, where he received guidance from the reputable Jacques Seysses of Domaine Dujac. In 1985, Alain founded Domaine Alain Graillot just outside the village of Pont de l’Isère, about 6 km south of Tain-l’Hermitage. He is now considered one of the most highly sought-after producers in the Northern Rhône due to his exuberant, robust and impeccably made Syrah-based wines.

The family owns 22 ha of vineyards made up of 30-year-old vines in Crozes-Hermitage that are planted on well-drained, flat alluvial plains between the Rhône and Isère Rivers and two small parcels of 12-year-old vines in St. Joseph planted on hard, granite slopes that produce a slightly fresher, easy-drinking wine. Total plantings include Syrah for reds and Marsanne and Roussanne for whites. The vines are farmed organically with traditional chemical-free vineyard management techniques, and all fruit is hand-harvested and respected based on its expressive terroir.

Beginning with the 2008 vintage, Alain’s son, Maxime Graillot, owner of Domaine Equis, took on the role of running his well-respected father’s Domaine in addition to his own. The red wines that Maxime produces under his father’s label maintain a traditional appeal of using stems and whole-cluster to add structure and longevity. 

“This is the style of wine I personally want to do - not too high in alcohol, with freshness and fruit.” - Alain Graillot 

All the grapes are hand-harvested, from severely-pruned, low-yielding vines. On arrival at the cellars, the white grapes go straight into the pneumatic press. After settling, 50% of the must is fermented in barrel (one year old oak bought from top Burgundy producers such as Sauzet). The other 50% is given a long, cool fermentation in stainless steel tanks, with temperatures controlled at 18°C. Graillot deliberately avoids malolactic, thus preserving acidity, and blends the components at the end of the winter. The wine is sterile filtered and bottled in April or May following the vintage.

The red Crozes-Hermitage grapes are not destemmed. They are loaded into lined concrete vats, and temperatures are brought down to 18°C for a 2 to 5 day pre-fermentation maceration. Once vinifications get going, temperatures rise to 30°C, and cuvaison lasts 15 to 21 days. The young wines are aged for one year - 80% of them in one to 3 year old oak barrels, the remaining 20% in vat. They are given a light filtration but no fining before bottling. The "La Guiraude" cuvée is not a specific terroir, but a selection of the year's best lots, chosen after Alain has tasted every barrel.

The Saint-Joseph is made the same way as the Crozes, but from destemmed grapes. The Hermitage grapes are also destemmed, and then fermented in a small, shallow vat with pigeage by foot. The wine is aged in one year old oak for 12 to 18 months.

Crozes Hermitage Wine Dinner at Restaurant 2941 with Chef Bertrand Chemel, Winemaker Maxime Graillot and Importer Laurent Givry, Northern Virginia, USA

 

Annette and I enjoyed an outstanding winemaker dinner at 2941 Restaurant in Northern Virginia, with with the food of Chef Bertrand Chemel, the Crozes Hermitage and other wines of Maxime Graillot and importer/ distributer Laurent Givry, founder/ owner of Elite Wines. 

 

See: Crozes Hermitage Wine Dinner at Restaurant 2941 with Chef Bertrand Chemel, Winemaker Maxime Graillot and Importer Laurent Givry, Northern Virginia, USA

 

 

Maxime Graillot

Maxime is involved in a number of wine projects, with his brother Antoine Graillot and with another winemaker, Thomas Schmittel. He also imports wine into France, including the wines of Weingut Rebholz, Pfalz, Germany.

Domaine Alain Graillot (Elite Wines)

In the space of 20 years Alain Graillot has established a reputation for making his Crozes Hermitage the most sought after of the appellation. In spite of only 20 hectares of vineyards, his wines are sold world wide on an allocation basis only. They are a special favourite with the most prestigious restaurants in France and elsewhere. Alain has a passion for the Syrah grape from which he makes hand crafted wines of great distinction and enormous elegance. His son Maxime has taken over direction of the estate with his father remaining in the not too distant background.

Domaine des Lises (Elite Wines)

Maxime Graillot is Alain’s son. Armed with a winemaking master’s degree, plus practical experience gained in Burgundy and South Africa, as well as with his father, Maxime has now established his own estate – the Domaine des Lises.

The winery is located next to Alain’s, but Maxime has his own vineyards, and is developing his own style. He practices 100% destemming, hand pigeage, and malolactic in barrel, but otherwise intervenes as little as possible to allow the wine to develop richness and complexity during its 12 months in cask. When questioned, Maxime sums up his philosophy as “succinct” !

Equis (Elite Wines)

Maxime Graillot and his winemaker and associate Thomas Schmittel are amongst the leading lights in the Crozes Hermitage appellation today. In 2003 the young and determined Maxime grasped the gem of an opportunity and purchased 7 hectares of Crozes Hermitage in Beaumont-Monteux (in the warmer, dryer south-east sector of the appellation) in the form of Domaine des Lises. In 2004 he produced just 6000 bottles of Crozes. Enter friend and winemaker Thomas Schmittel who teamed up with Maxime in 2006 to establish a small negoce company Equis. (Thomas cut his winemaking teeth with Cote Rotie’s René Rostaing no less, heading up his Languedoc estate, Domaine Puech Noble)

Domaine de Fa (Skurnik Wines)

The legendary Graillot family has a long history of making wine in the Northern Rhone, where their ability to produce some of the most age-worthy and delicious Syrah is matched by only a select few producers. Owner and winemakers for both Domaine des Lises and Domaine Alain Graillot, Maxime and Antoine Graillot, decided to look North for new challenges that extend beyond the dramatic slopes of the Rhone Valley. Their love of Gamay led them to the bucolic vistas of Beaujolais. The two brothers struck gold in 2013 when they purchased prime, organically farmed, sites in Fleurie and Saint Amour. With these pristine Granite vineyards, the Graillot family has announced themselves as a force to be reckoned with in a region that is experiencing a vinicultural Renaissance.

Syrocco - Morocco (Skurnik Wines)

Syrocco is produced by legendary Rhône vigneron Alain Graillot and his sons, Maxime and Antoine. He stumbled upon these vineyards and the Thalvin winery while bicycling in the Zenata region of Morocco between Casablanca and Rabat. This gorgeous area is an organic dream, with cool winds blowing off the Atlantic and no polluting industries whatsoever. The Thalvin winery has been around since the 1920’s, and when Alain found their gorgeous property, he formed a partnership with them to provide Syrah and Cinsault vines for his own Moroccan wines. Alain crafts these two wines as a fruit-forward and juicy, yet they are made in an Old- World style with soft extraction, excellent balance, and complex aromatics.

Arriving

In the Vineyard

In the Cellar

Tasting from Barrel and from Bottle

Bye-bye

 

Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours - Postings on schiller-wine (Published and Forthcoming):

 

Overview: Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours led by Annette Schiller - Facebook Day-by-day Postings 

Arriving in Lyon: Saucisson Sec, Saint-Marcellin Cheese and a Bottle of Rhône Rouge at Le Broc'Bar for Dinner - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Sunday Morning Stroll on the St. Antoine Market on the Banks of the Soane River Market in Lyon - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Meet&Greet (+ Introduction to the Rhône Valley Region) at Grand Hôtel des Terreaux in Lyon and Guided Sightseeing Tour of Lyon - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

"Menu Tradition" at Grand Café des Négociants - Created in 1864 - in Lyon - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

At the Foot of the Hermitage Hill and Tasting at Maison M. Chapoutier in Tain l’Hermitage - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch with a View of the Hermitage Hill at Brasserie Route N7 in Tain l’Hermitage - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Quick Stop at Valrhona, the Famous Chocolate Producer, in Tain l’Hermitage - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Philippe & Vincent Jaboulet, Croze-Hermitage, with Philippe & Vincent Jaboulet - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

3-course Dinner at Restaurant Le Quai in Tain L’Hermitage - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Caveau Ferraton Père & Fils in Tain L’Heremitage, with Jerome Nuss - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting at Domaine Yves Cuilleron in Chavanay, Northern Rhône, with Thibaut Jager - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Next to Maison Guigal: Lunch at Le Bistro de Serine in Ampuis - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour at Maison Guigal and Guigal Tasting at Château d’Ampuis, with Kim Conley - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Focus on "Natural Wine": Meeting Alice Feiring at Le Moderne Wine Bar of Romane Vallon in Toulon - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting in the Cellar at Cave Sébastien Blachon in Saint-Jean de Muzols, Northern Rhône, with Sébastien Blachon - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting from Barrel and from Bottle at Domaine Alain Graillot in Pont-de-l’Isère, Northern Rhône, with Maxime Graillot - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

High-end Wine Pairing Lunch at La Grand Table Maison Chabran, with Chef Louis Chabran and Legend Michel Chabran - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

High-end Tasting at Paul Jaboulet Aîné in Tain-l’Hermitage, Northern Rhône - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting at Domaine Alary in Cairanne, Southern Rhône, with Jean Etienne Alary and Senior Boss Denis Alary - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours 

Tasting at Domaine Chaume-Arnaud in Vinsobres, Southern Rhône, with Valérie Chaume-Arnaud and Virginia Fréguin - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch at Restaurant Le Mesclun in Séguret, with Artist Chef Christophe Bonzi - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting and Cellar Tour at Domaine Saint Gayan in Gigondas, Southern Rhône, with Owner/ Winemaker Christian-Yves Carré de Lusançay - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner at Restaurant Domaine de Cabasse, Séguret - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine des Pasquiers in Sablet, Southern Rhône, with Jean Claude, Philippe and Perrin Lambert - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting in the Front-yard at Domaine La Ligière in Beaumes-de-Venise - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

3-course Lunch at Restaurant Auberge Saint Roch in Beaumes-de-Venise, with the Husband and Wife Team Johann and Isabelle from Corsica - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting in the Cellar at Domaine La Martinelle in Lafare, Ventoux, with Owner/ Winemaker Corinne Faravel - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Charcuterie and Cheese Dinner with Rosé Wines at Hôtel Le Mas de l’Oulivié, Les Baux de Provence - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Olive Trees Tour, Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Mas de Gourgonnier in Mouriès, Alpilles, with Owner/ Winemaker Eve Cartier - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

3-course Lunch at Le Mas Teulière in Maussane-les-Alpilles - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Van Gogh and the Romans: Sightseeing in Arles - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch with a View at Restaurant Les Terrasses at the Pont du Gard - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Avignon - Town of the Popes: Guided Tour of the Palace of the Popes and of Pont Saint-Bénézet - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Light Dinner in Avignon at the Palace of the Popes - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine du Pègau in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, with Owner/ Winemaker Laurence Féraud and Winemaker Andreas Lenzenwöger (from Austria) - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Wine Pairing Lunch at Vignobles Alain Jaume, Domaine Grand Veneur in Courthézon, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, with Hélène Jaume and Chef Axel Thomas - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Berthet-Rayne in Courthézon, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, with Owner/ Winemaker Laure Berthet-Rayne (Laure Capeau) - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours 

Light Dinner in the old part of Avignon near "Les Halles", the Central Food Market - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Bottleing and Tasting at Château de Ségriès in Lirac, with Owner/ Winemaker Henri de Lanzac - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting Château de Beaucastel Wines at Boutique Famille Perrin in the Village of Châteauneuf-du-Pape - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch at La Mule du Pape in the Center of  Châteauneuf-du-Pape - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour, Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Château Gigognan in Sorgues, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, with Head Winemaker Jenna Le Lay - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Michelin-star level Wine-pairing Dinner at Hôtellerie du Château des Fines Roches in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, with Chef Hugo Loridan-Fombonnet - Rhône Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours