NORTHERN RHONE VALLEY Ansonia Wines Factsheet FACT SHEET Northern Rhône A long narrow region beginning below Lyon NORTHERN RHÔ NE and stretching 50 miles due South. WINEMAKING APPELLATIONS Most consider the Northern Rhône to be the Côte Rôtie world’s finest and most elegant expression of St-Joseph Syrah. Nearly all of the reds are pure Syrah. Hermitage Condrieu is made from pure Viognier. Other white Crozes-Hermitage appellations use Roussanne and Marsanne. Cornas Grapes are planted on steep, East-facing granite slopes. Condrieu Winemakers use varying degrees of oaking, depending on personal preference. Wines at the higher end St-Peray may be oaked noticeably in small barrels. Did you know? The Northern and Southern Rhône valleys share a river and a few grapes (Syrah and Viognier), but the Southern Rhône produces nearly twenty times as much volume as the Northern Rhone. Côte Rôtie and Hermitage combined produce just one tenth the volume of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. FACT SHEET - 02 - GRAPES Red: Syrah White: Viognier, Marsanne, Roussanne TASTE Syrah: blackberry, black pepper, bacon, cloves, black raspberries, chocolate, HISTORY violets, smoke, white pepper · Cornas among the oldest vineyards in France Viognier: almond, gardenia, · 50 AD: Pliny the Elder writes of “wines of Vienne” mango, cocoanut, tangerine, · 840 AD: Charlemagne visits Cornas, sends wine home lychee, macadamia · 17th Century: Northern Rhône reds were favorites of the Roussanne/Marsanne: Tzars of Russia honey, pear, lemon, orange · 19-20th Century: Phylloxera, World Wars hurt production peel, herbs, straw · 1980s: resurgence begins, more domaines begin to bottle · Today: fashionable among somms, hipsters, aficionados ANSONIA WINEMAKERS Bonnefond Saint-Clair Tunnel Dumien-Serrette (Côte Rôtie) (Crozes Hermitage) (Cornas) (Cornas) ANSONIAWINES.COM.