Andre Perret, Condrieu Coteaux de Chery 2020

Description

Tasting notes

About the Producer

André Perret is a winemaker from Chavanay in the northern Rhône Valley. When he was growing up, most of the land there was planted into orchards, including the bulk of his family’s own small estate. Their roots were in Burgundy, though, where André’s ancestors owned and worked in vineyards in Chassagne-Montrachet until World War II forced them to relocate. André studied biology and worked as a cancer researcher, but he felt cooped up in the laboratory and dreamt of life outdoors. In 1982, after completing a degree in viticulture and enology, he returned to his hometown and started with a few small rows of vines that had belonged to his uncle. At that time, there were just two other vignerons in Chavanay, and the region was in decline. Still, he believed profoundly in the value of the local terroirs and worked hard to valorize the area, becoming president of the department’s association of young agriculturalists and establishing programs to encourage people to settle down and plant vineyards there. He also worked tirelessly to develop his own estate, expanding production by renting vineyards and replanting the family lands to vines. Perret’s approach to winegrowing is classic: respect each individual terroir—he produces several single-vineyard wines—and work the soil to avoid the need for chemical treatments. His goal is to make fresh, structured wines, in “a sort of Burgundian style” as he says, but without too much wood; wines that aren’t too worked over and will age well. His Condrieu bottlings are reference points for the entire appellation. André Perret took control of a famous vineyard called “Clos Chanson” in 1986 to cultivate it. From this place, every year comes an exceptional wine combining flavour and subtlety called “Clos Chanson”. Another famous wine from André Perret is Condrieu “Chéry”, one of the 100 Legendary Wines listed in the Solar guide by leading sommeliers from the Taillevent wine cellars in Paris.