2011 Yves Cuilleron, Marsanne “Les Vignes d’ a Cote” Rhone White, France.
Another very nice effort from Yves Cuilleron and his Les Vignes d’ a Cote line of wines, which are steals, especially his 2011 lineup, like this pretty and interesting Marsanne. Yves make ultra fine wines that show classic terroir and style, from the Northern Rhone where his Syrah and Viognier wines from Condrieu and St. Joseph, plus other sites are stuff of legends, but his entry level wines are fun and of the highest quality, again like this 2011 Marsanne which is a baby white Hermitage or St. Peray. This vintage shows good fresh juicy fruits, but has surprising density and length too with apple butter, pear and stone fruit, mineral spice, butterscotch and tangy citrus with crushed stone and fig notes. This is a wine to drink young, read now and over the next year or so. If you are looking to understand Rhone wines there is no better place to start than Yves Cuilleron’s Les Vignes d’ a Cote wines, and for the third time this little Marsanne is a great choice in white, with lovely balance, texture and ease of use.
($20 Est.) 91 Points, grapelive
