MICHÈLE AUBÉRY-LAURENT and her son MAXIME-FRANÇOIS LAURENT in the cellars of DOMAINE GRAMENON  

2011 RHÔNE IN THE ORGANIC WORLD

Three domaines that shun the limelight made the journey to Paris in late March 2012, to present their wines to restaurateurs and cavistes, and me! Paris is a stronghold for organic, or soi-disant "natural" wines. Dard & Ribo at Crozes-Hermitage have long had a wide following here for their collection, their low-key tactics appealing to eclectic food and wine lovers in the capital. There is also the issue that few of the domaines present - Dard & Ribo, Romaneaux-Destezet and Gramenon, are naturally loquacious to outsiders, especially in English.

The venue was the Repaire de Cartouche in the 11ème arrondissement, local metro Filles du Calavaire on Line 8 (direct from the Opéra) where I eat every year or so, and end up paying rather a lot, since my eye is drawn to mature bottles of Dard & Ribo, Fonsalette, Rayas and friends. The chef Rodolphe gets taller and more pink-faced each time I see him.

He knows me as an "agriculteur", with some little irony in that term. I once took him a large organic potato from my garden, a beautiful Romano main crop, which has a beckoning deep pink-magenta skin, with gleaming white flesh inside. Showing him my potato, he exclaimed "YOU grew that, looking my skinny frame up and down with deep suspicion. Ce n`est pas vrai - it can`t be ..." He whipped out a pruning knife, took a small slice out of the spud, tasted it raw, and said, with energetic eyebrow raising, "pas mal, pas mal", then put it on the back counter next to the till. There it stayed for a few months: a Legendary Spud, I assure you.

Gramenon and Romaneaux-Destezet showed mainly 2011; Dard & Ribo more 2010 than 2011.

Michèle Aubéry-Laurent of Gramenon told me her view on 2011: "a big crop, a good volume of grapes has helped the wines to be more fluid this year; but heat, around 35°C at the harvest, made life very tricky. Acidities fell, so our 30 years of working the soils came into play, their mineral content helping the vines and the wines thereafter."

The other big danger in 2011 was rushed fermentations. "We had malolactic fermentations starting while the sugars were still fermenting," she added. This was confirmed by Hervé Souhaut of Romaneaux-Destezet, who stated, "volatile acidity levels are quite high this year, around 0.60, and I find the reds quite fragile, with high pH levels. The whites are also low in acidity, but they are similar in some ways to 2010 - the same level of ripeness, phenols and degree - 13°."

The result in 2011 was the need to be highly practical during the cellar work. "In 2011 we had to apply a total of 25mg per litre of sulphur dioxide during the vinification," according to Michèle Aubéry of Gramenon. Gramenon also benefited from an upgraded cooling system in their cellars, which in turn has permitted a change of approach during vinification. "Starting with the 2011 vintage," Michèle stated, "we have changed our approach to the temperature of the fermentation. We used to restrict it to a maximum of 25°C, but were advised that we should try letting it run when it is ending its sugars. Now it goes to 28-30°C. We start with keeping the vats at 13-14°C for 5 days, and can do that thanks to the new cooling system. The gain is wines that are clearer (plus nets) and have lower levels of volatile acidity." 

2011 is shaping up as a vintage high on drinkability, from both Northern and Southern Rhône - a year that, in the right, careful hands, will give early pleasure. Acidity levels are undoubtedly low, so some of the simple reds are already showing well, their pliant features making them easy on the palate. Whites are perhaps a little better suited to the circumstances of the vintage if one is considering Côtes du Rhône, Villages style wines. As for the big appellations, expect wines to take shape over time, and show some depth and reserve. In some ways, the year reminds me at this early stage of 2007 on a lesser scale, with the easy tannins of 2000.

My favourite wine of the organic trio - well quartet if you include the two wines of Michèle`s son Maxime-François Laurent - came as no surprise: Hervé Souhaut`s white Domaine Romaneaux-Destezet vin de pays de l`Ardèche - the 2009 were both great, the 2011 very good. The vines - 60% Viognier, 40% Roussanne - are nearing 20 years old now, and always blend with ease, providing a true velvet glove cladding, with none of the banditry that is soften shown by the rampant Viognier. The Wine Society imported the 2009 to Britain, and I hope they will repeat that order.

Hervé Souhaut has gained in self-confidence since I first met him, and now handles different crop and vintage situations with extremely precise care, and skill. His wines are balanced and drinkable, which is the sort of comment any grower would wish to read. He works with a little sulphur dioxide, not recklessly minimal amounts. Hence consumers get a fair deal.

The Dard & Ribo philosophy has always been to make wines that can be drunk early in life, with a noisy, chattering group of friends - vins de convivialité. René-Jean is the conveyor of barbed one-liners, and was notable in Paris for having severely trimmed back his beard (barbe in French.... oh dear) prior to the pilgrimage north from the Rhône. Their 2011 whites were mainly offering immediate drinking, although the Blanc Divers held more scope and potential, an interesting wine.

2010 was successful for the team Dard & Ribo: both the white and red Saint-Joseph performed well I was also taken by the red Les Rouges de Bâties from red clay soils at Crozes-Hermitage itself, and the white Pé du Loup from Larnage, the next door commune to Crozes - both these villages stand in the northern sector of the Crozes-Hermitage appellation, not the sprawling plain of Les Chassis, where fruit was the main crop until around 40 years ago. I did note that the prices of the Dard & Ribo wines seemed relatively high.

One of my regular favourites from Gramenon is the Poignée des Raisins - the handful of grapes translated. It is a Beajolais-style free running wine, with the virtues of that region before it became blighted by the Nouveau marketing and association. A while back I showed the 2008 at a tasting in McLaren Vale, South Australia, with some trepidation I admit, but it performed heroically. Its lightness of touch appealed to growers, some of whom were already embarked on their search for greater finesse and terroir in their own wines.

The 2011 conforms to type, being a w.o.w. wine (what one wants) - ideal for the restaurant trade, ideal for get-togethers en plein air, outdoors and so on. It had been bottled in early March 2012. Greater depth and mystery were served up by the Vinsobres La Papesse, which is admittedly a small run (2,000 b) wine. The Syrah Sierra du Sud was interesting, and reflected pretty faithful Syrah qualities, while La Sagesse, also a Côtes du Rhône, was intricate and true to its garrigue origins. The Mémé since 2009 has been a Vin de France, and this showed its habitual depth, albeit in a young, raw state - bottling towards the end of this year.

So an early look at some 2011s which are made without cosmetics: it confirms impressions that this is a useful vintage, offering potential enjoyment and nothing too demanding of the drinker. It is not a collector`s year, at least I hope not.

LEADING WINES FROM THE PARIS ORGANIC TASTING, END MARCH, 2012