Domaine Georges Vernay : Les Chaillées de l'Enfer 2023

Characteristics and tasting notes for the "Les Chaillées de l'Enfer" 2023 vintage

Tasting

Color
The color reveals a delicate pale gold hue, reflecting beautiful maturity.

Nose
Intense and particularly expressive, the bouquet reveals great aromatic complexity. It opens with notes of stone fruit such as apricot, peach and pear, blended with hints of passion fruit and citrus. Subtle floral nuances of rose and violet intertwine with green accents of mint and spicy touches of ginger and saffron.

Palate
The palate offers a silky texture and a lovely fullness, carried by an intense minerality and a delicate saline touch. Flavors of exotic fruit and apricot unfold generously. The finish, persistent and taut, ends on an elegant, light mineral bitterness.

Food and wine pairing

This white wine pairs beautifully with seafood, raw fish dishes such as citrus ceviche, or scallops. It also enhances poultry in cream sauce, traditional pike quenelles, as well as subtly spiced Asian or Indian-inspired dishes.

Service and storage

Accessible from its youth, the "Les Chaillées de l'Enfer" 2023 vintage offers an optimal tasting window between three and eight years after release, allowing it to be enjoyed until around 2031. Lovers of more evolved wines can cellar it for about a decade to let its full complexity express itself.

The mineral, complex expression of a great Condrieu wine by Domaine Georges Vernay

The estate

Officially founded in 1940 by Francis Vernay, Domaine Georges Vernay is a true institution of the Rhône Valley. Located on the steep slopes of the appellation, the estate played a historic role in preserving the Viognier grape variety. Today, the 24-hectare estate is run by Christine Vernay, joined by her daughter Emma Amsellem. Together, they carry on the excellence and identity of this legendary estate, cultivating their vines according to organic and biodynamic principles, raising their wines to the pinnacle of Rhône winemaking.

The vineyard

The grapes for this vintage come from vines over 50 years old, located at the heart of the Condrieu appellation, in the terroirs of Sainte-Agathe, La Caille and Coteau de Vernon. This terraced vineyard stands out for its dizzying slopes, which demand rigorous manual work. The soils, composed of biotite granite and muscovite, give the wine its distinctive mineral signature while ensuring excellent natural drainage.

The vintage

2023 was marked by a particularly warm and early growing cycle in the region. These summer weather conditions led to an early harvest starting at the end of August. Despite the heat, the vines were able to draw on their granite terroirs to preserve lovely freshness, yielding grapes of optimal ripeness.

Winemaking and aging

Following a manual harvest at full ripeness, the "Les Chaillées de l'Enfer" 2023 vintage undergoes a meticulous fermentation. The wine is then aged for 12 months in small French oak barrels, 25% of which are new. Bottling takes place 15 months after harvest, allowing the wine time to subtly integrate its oaky notes.

Grape variety

100% Viognier