CÔTE RÔTIE

2019 Colline de Couzou Domaine Patrick & Christophe Bonnefond

EN PRIMEUR

Aged for 18 months in 400-litre barrels (10–15% new). Barrel sample. Tasted blind. Smoky nose – lapsang souchong with a cedar spice. Moderate acidity with good vibrancy, with cool blue fruits and very fine detailed tannins. A round and opulent feel to the finish. Drinking range: 2024 - 2032 Rating: 17+ Alistair Cooper MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Dec 2020)

* This is a pre-shipment/primeur offer. All orders are accepted under the TERMS of this offer which differ from the terms of the rest of the site.

Pungent cherry, blueberry and candied violet aromas are complemented by suggestions of exotic spices, olive and smoky minerals. Succulent and penetrating on the palate, offering concentrated, appealingly sweet black/blue fruit flavors, a frisson of vanilla and a violet pastille quality that builds on the back half. Hefty and broad yet lively as well, finishing with well-judged tannins and strong, floral-driven persistence. Rating: 91-93 Josh Raynolds, www.vinousmedia.com (May 2020)

Christophe and Patrick took over this family domaine in 1990. It extends to ten hectares, with small amounts of IGP 'Collines Rhodaniennes' Viognier (0.5 hectare) and Syrah (1 hectare) as well as the Condrieu and the three cuvées of Côte-Rôtie.

The Condrieu (1 hectare) comes from the granite soils of the Côte Chatillon. It is fermented in 440l barrels (with 30% new wood) at 18C and aged on the lees for ten months.

The 'Colline de Couzou' Côte-Rôtie comes from several plots in the north and south of the appellation, on schist and granite, about six hectares in total. All the reds are fermented in stainless steel with around 20% whole bunches. The Couzou is then aged in 400l barrels for eighteen months, with 20% new wood. Production hovers just above 2000 cases a year.

The Côte Rozier (0.5 hectare) is in the north of the appellation, on schist and mica-schist. The vinification is the same, but the percentage of new wood for this and the Rochains goes up to 30% and the élevage in barrel is extended to 20 months. Only about 160 cases a year. The Rochains (1 hectare), a slightly bigger cuvée at 300 cases a year, is also in the north of the appellation, the other side of La Landonne, on a soil of schist with lots of iron oxide. These are the oldest vines of the domaine.

ORDERING VIA OUR WEBSITE:

  • Click on the 'ORDER' button to add cases to your Wishlist order form. The Wishlist appears in both the sidebar and header (separately from the main basket).
  • You can view and edit your Wishlist at any time before submitting the order form.
  • Submit your Wishlist order form with your details and please indicate any special requirements in the notes, including whether you would like the wines duty paid.
  • We will respond as quickly as possible with confirmation of your order and your invoice.

Please note that certain wines are on very tight allocations and will first be offered to customers who buy across the range. If you have any queries, please email our primeurs team or speak to your usual L&S contact.

ORDERING VIA EMAIL:

Please feel free to email us your Wishlist at any time. This list can include wines listed as available on the website, as well as those marked 'To Be Advised'. We will reply as soon as possible with confirmation of what we can offer.

STORAGE OPTIONS:

Wines bought en primeur are scheduled to arrive in the UK over the course of the next eighteen months. If you do not wish to take home delivery, you may wish to consider where you would like the wines shipped on arrival in the UK. Lea & Sandeman offers duty paid and in bond storage through a dedicated storage company called Elephant Storage. For more details on the terms and fees associated with storage please go to our Storage Homepage or contact our primeurs team for more information.

While helpful, we do not require a firm commitment on delivery destination to process your primeur order at this stage. Our team will be in contact with you when your wines arrive in the UK to confirm the necessary delivery details.

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RHÔNE PRIMEUR FAQ

OFFER: All wines are offered subject to availability and final confirmation.

PRICING: All prices are quoted IN BOND ex-VAT, by the case size stated. Please double check that the desired case size does match what is being offered as wines are variously listed in threes, sixes, dozens, halves and larger formats.

DELIVERY - TIMING: This is a primeur offer so the wines are not yet physically available for delivery. They will be shipped to the UK over the next eighteen months. Generally wines are shipped to your nominated location once the whole order has landed in our London City Bond account. If you require wines to be delivered by a certain date, please advise us at the time of ordering.

DELIVERY - FEES: In bond delivery to an Elephant Storage account (for more information see 'Storage Options' opposite) is free of charge. Transfer of wines to any third party bond (i.e. not Elephant Storage) will incur an administration charge of £16.50 + VAT for all orders under £500. If you require wines duty paid, please indicate this in your Wishlist order form. A duty & VAT invoice will be raised once all the wines on your order are available for shipment. Once the relevant duty & VAT has been settled, we will ship the wines to your nominated address as per our normal duty paid Delivery Terms.

PAYMENT: All orders will be invoiced for immediate payment by cheque, cash, debit card or cleared funds to our account. We regret that we cannot accept credit cards for primeur orders. We reserve the right to apply a dunning charge of 2% per month on invoices unpaid after 30 days.