M. Chapoutier : Les Granits 2025

Tasting notes and recommendations for the Saint-Joseph "Les Granits" 2025 from M. Chapoutier

Tasting

Appearance
Dark, very deep color, dense and almost inky, indicating excellent concentration.

Nose
An intense and precise nose of black fruits (blueberry), enhanced by spices. The ensemble is nuanced with delicate smoky notes, alongside a mineral and slightly reductive touch reminiscent of gunpowder and graphite.

Palate
The attack is lively and direct. The texture unfolds into a vertical palate, supported by velvety, elegant, and coating tannins. Notes of graphite, lightly sweet violet, and black fruit coulis emerge. The finish, delicate yet persistent, gains complexity with hints of hearth and fruit.

A mineral and refined red Saint-Joseph

The estate

Founded in 1808 in Tain-l'Hermitage, the Maison M. Chapoutier is one of the leading references of the Rhône Valley. Since Michel Chapoutier took over in 1990, the estate has established itself as a pioneer of environmentally committed viticulture. Today, the transition is gradually being passed on to his children, Mathilde and Maxime. With 389 hectares cultivated biodynamically, the vineyard strives to faithfully express the identity of each terroir, notably through meticulously managed single-parcel selections.

The vineyard

This cuvée comes from very old vines planted on the steep, granitic slopes of Tournon. This historic sector, at the heart of the Saint-Joseph appellation, imparts a distinctive minerality and remarkable concentration to the grapes, precisely expressing the character of this rugged vineyard.

The vintage

The vintage began with a rather mild and very rainy winter, building up good water reserves, followed by prolonged cold weather that delayed budburst and reduced the risk of frost. Spring, alternating between rain and sunshine, led to strong vegetative growth and increased vine pressure, with early flowering but few clusters. The summer was marked by two heatwaves and a hailstorm in Crozes-Hermitage, causing some losses. Harvesting began early, from mid-August, and was spread out thanks to late-August rains that refined ripeness levels.

Winemaking and aging

The "Les Granits" cuvée is crafted using a low-intervention approach. Harvesting is carried out by hand at optimal ripeness. Fermentation begins spontaneously with indigenous yeasts. Aging is then divided: most of the wine matures in tanks or large vessels for 8 to 10 months to preserve fruit purity and mineral freshness, while about a quarter is aged in demi-muids, bringing additional structure and aromatic complexity before the final blend.

Grape variety

"Les Granits" 2025 from M. Chapoutier is made from 100% Syrah.