Wine Advisor
M. Chapoutier, Ermitage de L'Oree Blanc 2021
View analysis
Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: James Suckling
A refined, textural and vibrant Ermitage white with so much restrained power. There is a saltiness here. Dried lemons, quince peel, grilled almonds, white peaches, wet stones, wild herbs and white flowers mingle successively on the nose. It’s medium-bodied yet it has a gigantic dimension. It’s all contained, restrained and funneled into the precise, highly textural and tense palate. Succulent, with baked lemon character and a long, long finish. From biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification. Drinkable now, but best from 2025.
Reviewed by: Joe Czerwinski
Hints of honeyed peaches join ripe apricot and melon on the nose of Chapoutier's superb 2021 Ermitage de l'Orée. As always, it's 100% Marsanne from the clay soils of the Les Murets lieu-dit. Medium to full-bodied, it's ripe and succulent, with a long, briny and refreshing finish. It may be closing down by now, so try to hold off opening a bottle until around 2030—or allow several hours for decanting.
About the Producer
Founded in 1808, M. Chapoutier owns 175 hectares of vines in five appellations in the Rhone Valley and is now run by the energetic and brilliant Michel Chapoutier. Since Michel started running the estate, the quality of the winemaking has improved very quickly and the philosophy of winemaking has changed considerably. Michel Chapoutier's achievements caused an instant sensation in the winemaking world and he completely changed the way Chapoutier wines were made and the winemaking process, eventually making wines to rival those made by Marcel Guigal, one of the best winemakers in the Rhone Valley. The vineyards of Château Sapoutier range from the Rhone Valley to Châteauneuf-du-Pape, with a number of quality vineyards planted with Syrah, Grenache, Marsanne, Roussanne and other major grape varieties. The winery is "mono-varietal" (i.e. making wines from a single variety), for example, all Syrah for the Châteauneuf-du-Rotie wines, all Marsanne for the Hermitage whites and all Chateauneuf-du-Pape wines. The wines of Chateauneuf-du-Pape are all Grenache. Château Sapoutier has worked tirelessly to improve the quality of its wines, even though each single vineyard produces far more than the 500 cases of fine wine. Since 1989, Château Sapoutier has been using biodynamic farming and winemaking methods with the aim of producing wines that are the purest and closest to the natural terroir. Every decision, every step of the viticultural and winemaking process is designed to add to the terroir, varietal character and vintage identity of the wines. Only wild yeasts are used for fermentation and the wines are made in small oak barrels. The best red and white wines are not clarified or filtered before bottling.
1997(1)1998(1)1999(2)2000(1)2005(1)2007(2)2008(1)2009(5)2010(1)2011(1)2012(4)2013(5)2014(1)2015(4)2016(3)2017(4)2018(8)2019(21)2020(9)
Package Size
