Wine Advisor
Alain Voge, Cornas Les Vieilles Vignes 2012
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Jeb Dunnuck
Showing the vintage's rounded, supple and forward character, the 2012 Cornas Vieilles Vignes reveals lots of black raspberry, crushed flowers, toasted bread and licorice aromas and flavors. Full-bodied, ripe, textured and layered, it's a polished and beautifully balanced Cornas to drink anytime over the coming 10-12 years.
Reviewed by: Jeb Dunnuck
Also incredible, and almost as good, the 2012 Cornas Les Vieilles Vignes (20 months in 15% new oak) offers up layers of creme de cassis, blackberry, charred herbs, earth and hints of flowers to go with a lively, pure and incredibly focused profile on the palate. Slightly more fresh and lively than the Les Vieilles Fontaines (which has more richness), this beautiful effort should also be given a handful of years in the cellar and have upwards of two decades of life. One of the leading estates in Cornas, Alain Voge, with more and more assistance from Alberic Mazoyer (formerly at Chapoutier), produces some of the most impressive, concentrated and rich wines of the appellation. Owning 17 acres in Cornas, spread across 12 different plots, and 15 acres in Saint Peray, this estate produces two whites from Saint Peray and up to three Cornas in any given vintage. In Cornas, the first cuvee is the Les Chailles, which comes from vines planted in the mid-1980s. Aged 18 months in neutral oak, it is the most forward and approachable of the releases. The old vine Vieilles Vignes cuvee sees more time in oak (some of which can be new) and comes from vines averaging 30 to90 years in age. Lastly, the tiny production and top wine, the Les Vieilles Fontaines, is a vineyard selection (normally from the Les Cotes and Chaillot lieux-dits) that sees up to 24 months in 15% new oak. Both the Vieilles Vignes and Les Vieilles Fontaines are serious, concentrated wines that will benefit from short-term cellaring. As a whole, vinification here is semi-modern, with plenty of destemming, and while the wines shows gorgeous polish and purity, they never lose their Cornas soul. These wines need to be on every reader’s short list. Importer: Citadel Trading Corp., New York, NY; tel. (212) 245-2844
Reviewed by: Jeb Dunnuck
Similar in style, yet deeper and richer, the 2012 Cornas Les Vieilles Vignes comes from 8-9 different parcels and sees roughly 20 months in 15% new French oak barrels. It’s a blockbuster-styled Cornas that doesn’t pull any punches in its sexy, ripe and textured personality. Black raspberry, cassis, licorice, ground herbs and sweet oak all emerge from this polished 2012, and while it dishes out plenty of pleasure now due to its wealth of fruit, it will have 10-15 years of longevity.
Reviewed by: Josh Raynolds
Inky ruby. Deeply pitched aromas of cherry compote, dark chocolate, licorice pastille and black pepper. Broad, sweet and fleshy on the palate, with strong intensity to its singed plum, blackberry liqueur and bitter chocolate flavors. This powerful, concentrated, youthfully tannic wine finishes spicy and long, with excellent thrust and mineral-driven persistence.
Reviewed by: Josh Raynolds
(made with 20% whole clusters): Opaque purple. Sexy, complex bouquet of fresh dark berries, incense, potpourri and star anise. Lively, sharply focused and pure, with sappy blackberry and bitter cherry flavors complicated by suave spicecake and floral pastille accents. Supple tannins come on late and add shape to the long, spicy, penetrating finish.
About the Producer
Domaine Alain Voge is a family-run winery based in Cornas and has over time built itself the reputation as a superstar of the appellation and its benchmark without doubt. It was founded many generations ago but was blessed with the talented beginnings in winemaking by Alain himself in 1958. Alain tore up the rule book, updated the winemaking techniques of his father, expanded the vineyards and began bottling his wines himself. With over 70 parcels of vines totaling seven hectares, it is no wonder that Alain Voge sometimes seems distracted. Half in jest, he says that the reason he harvests so late is to figure out which vines are his. He spent some time under Albéric Mazoyer, manager and associate of Alain Voge from 2004-2018, before progressing further and making a start in organic production. Thus, since 2013,the whole vineyard is run using biodynamic agriculture, where an artisan and entirely manual viticulture is practiced on the slopes of the Rhône’s rive droite. Since 2018,Lionel Fraissehas been at the helm. He continues to champion the sustainable winemaking of his predecessors.
