Domaine Verset - A & E Cornas 2020 Magnum (1.5L)

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Producer	Domaine Verset
Country	France
Region	Rhone Valley
Subregion	Cornas
Varietal	Syrah (Shiraz)
Vintage	2020
Sku	12017113
Size	1.5L

  

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With Champelrose vines from her great uncle Noël Verset’s original holdings, and inherited plots of 100+ year-old vines in Les Mazards and La Geynale, Emmanuelle Verset is carrying on the family tradition of crafting Cornas via whole bunch vinification and élévage with little to no new oak.
While continuing to honor her heritage, Emmanuelle has made many improvements including transitioning to organic viticulture, seeding cover crops, building a new cellar, introducing temperature control, and buying a pneumatic press.

Those that flock to the steep slopes of Cornas for authentic, ageworthy wines may rest assured that Verset remains a trusted source for benchmark Syrahs that combine richness and energy.

Sixth generation vigneronne Emmanuelle Verset is one of only two women at the helm of a Cornas domaine. The village she calls home bears little resemblance to the Cornas of the first half of the 20th century. By the late seventies, the appellation had just fifty hectares of vines and even fewer vignerons. Phylloxera and two World Wars had taken their toll, but it was the dominance of the negotiants and their demand for low prices that left vignerons with few options. Rather than continuing the back breaking work of tending vines on steep granite slopes for little compensation, most Cornas vignerons went to cities in search of better paying factory jobs.

Noël Verset, Emmanuelle’s great-uncle, was among the few that stayed. He joined his father in 1931 at age 12 and worked his family vineyards for more than seven decades. He upheld the Cornas tradition of producing a single wine by blending his now famed lieux-dits. This hefty arsenal of pure, balanced, terroir transparent wines not only helped save Cornas, it set the standard for the region and secured Cornas’s place in the pantheon of France’s most exalted terroirs and age worthy wines. Today, Noël Verset Cornas are among the most coveted wines in the world. 

With no direct heirs, Noël ended up selling his vineyards to colleagues and family. His nephew Alain took over his vines in Champelrose, a vineyard Noël felt brought red fruits and earthy character to his blend. Additionally, Alain inherited prime plots in Les Mazards and La Geynale — both now 100+ years old — from his father, Louis (Noël’s brother). Approaching retirement in 2016, Alain was joined by his daughter Emmanuelle and Domaine A & E Verset was born. 

Emmanuelle proudly continues the traditions of her father and her great-uncle, while making improvements to address today’s climate challenges. She has transitioned the holdings to organic viticulture, adjusted trellising to leave as much vegetation as possible during the growing season and began seeding cover crops in the lower plain vineyards. She also built a new cellar, introduced temperature control, and bought a pneumatic press. But she hasn’t changed everything, still opting to use whole bunches, eschew new oak, and to blend her five lieux-dits (Les Mazards, Champelrose, La Cote, Les Cotes, and a small part of Reynard) to produce a flagship Cornas. Additionally, the wine she calls “Signature” is a barrel selection of old vines from the famed La Geynale vineyard. Small quantities of Vin de France Syrah and Viognier round out the range and offer up endless drinking pleasure. 

A charming photo of Noël smiling in the vines is propped on a barrel in Emmanuelle’s small cellar. She works with a constant regard for the past and a keen understanding of the role she plays in the Verset family’s future as vignerons in Cornas. 

VINEYARD: The vines are located in the heart of Cornas on 5 plots (Mazard, Champelrose, la Côte, les Côtes and a small part of Reynard).
SOIL: Granitic bedrock
VITICULTURE: Practicing organic with emphasis on biodiversity. The grapes are harvested manually.
VINIFICATION: Whole cluster fermentation lasting 2 weeks with manual punching down (in the morning) and pumping over (in the evening). After devatting, the plots are assembled.
AGING: Aged 15 months in 3-8 year-old oak barrels of 225-440L from several French coopers.

Fresh, stemmy oregano and marked blackcurrant notes. A fine and elegant style of Cornas with quite driving acidity. Bright, saline and granitic finish. Very accessible, this is a clear depiction of the vintage and the terroir. From some of the finest lieux-dits on the Cornas slope. No destemming.