Jean Louis Chave — Willette Wines

The Chave family has been making wine in the Rhone valley since 1481. This craft is truly in the blood of Jean Louis Chave after 16 generations of Chave men have carefully tended to this land and ushered these incredibly rare and classically made wines. The name is synonymous with Hermitage itself, and few would argue that anyone expresses the great terroir of this area better than Chave.

The family bought their first vines 1865, and now own 9.3 hectares (spread over nine parcels out of the eighteen that comprise the appellation of Hermitage) of Syrah and 4.3 hectares of Marsanne and Roussanne. Jean Louis took over from his father in 1992 and has seamlessly maintained the art form of blending their diverse terroirs within the hill of Hermitage to create one red and one white of great harmony, nuance and depth.

Though the exact blend of parcels changes every year, one thing is consistent. The base of Hermitage Rouge is always comprised of Bessards, their steep, granite-based site. The white always has a base of Marsanne from a nearly century-old plot called Péléat, which is a monopole. The white also sees about 20% Roussanne each year.

In special vintages, where Jean Louis feels he can make a separate cuvée without compromising the classic Hermitage Rouge, he will bottle Hermitage ‘Cuvée Cathelin’. Bernard Cathelin was an artist (he passed in 2004) and family friend who was known for his stylized abstractions of flowers and landscapes. The label itself reflects one of his works of art.

The bottling is made with the same blending technique as the regular Hermitage, but the percentages of each parcel are different. The wine has only been made nine times, in 1990, 1991, 1995, 1998, 2000, 2003, and 2009. Only 200/3pack cases are made each vintage, making it one of the rarest French wines in the world.

In addition to their Hermitage wines, the Chaves make several wines from the Saint Joseph appellation. The Saint Joseph Rouge is from some reclaimed family vineyards in the historic center of St. Joseph that Jean Louis re-terraced and replanted. He also makes a bottling from a beautiful vineyard that Jean Louis purchased in 2009 called Les Clos Florentin.

When I asked Jean Louis if they farm biodynamically, he said “we don’t have a term for it, it’s just the way we have always farmed, with the cycles of the moon, and very little intervention”.

Jean Louis also has a negociant project he started in 1995 under the JL Chave Selections label. It started with purchased fruit and is now being made with mostly estate fruit in the appellations Saint Joseph, Saint Joseph Blanc, Crozes Hermitage, Côtes du Rhône and Hermitage Red and White.

For a deep dive into Hermitage from Jean Louis himself, listen to his podcast interview with Levi Dalton here.

JL Chave Selections

Côtes-du-Rhône ‘Mon Coeur’
The Côtes-du-Rhône ‘Mon Coeur’ is a blend of Syrah and Grenache, usually with a small amount of Mourvèdre. The vines are between 20 and 60 years old, and the Syrah comes from north facing slopes. The grapes are sourced from three vineyard sites in and around Chateauneuf-du-Pape from the villages of Vinsobres, Rasteau and Cairanne. Jean Louis just bought the vineyard in Visobres, which makes up the majority of the blend. Technically, the wine could officially fall under the Villages classification, but Jean Louis prefers to keep it straight Côtes-du-Rhône to offer some flexibility. The grapes are brought to the Chave domaine, the parcels fermented separately in stainless steel, blended, and aged in large Stockinger barrels at Clos Florentin before bottling. 6000/12 packs are imported annually into the US.

Crozes-Hermitage Blanc ‘Sybele’
60% Marsanne, 40% Roussanne from a vineyard owned by Jean Louis’ caviste. The vineyard is made up of rare Kaolin soil, which looks like white hail on the surface of the clay soil. This soil is specific to the village of Larnage and is derived from granite. The name ‘Sybele’ refers to the French term for “so beautiful – si belle”, but in Greek mythology, Sybele was also the Goddess who ate her children! The grapes are vinified at the Chave domaine using indigenous yeasts and old tonneaux. The wine is then aged 15-18 months in used oak barrels. Only 40/12 pack cases are imported into the US annually.

Crozes-Hermitage Rouge ‘Silene’
100% Syrah. Silène was Bacchus’ drunken godfather. The grapes come from hillside vineyards located in Larnage, as well as a parcel on the east rear flank of Hermitage owned by Jean Louis. His father got this vineyard as part of his purchase of the L’Hermite parcel in 1982, and Jean Louis planted it in 2002. Both parcels are farmed organically. It is rare for Crozes-Hermitage to come from hillside, granitic soil - most is sourced from the alluvial valley floor. The granitic soil gives more structure and freshness. The grapes are vinified at the Chave domaine using indigenous yeasts in a mix of stainless steel and old tonneaux. The wine is then aged 15-18 months in 600-liter oak casks. 300/12pack cases are imported into the US.

Saint Joseph Blanc ‘Circa’
‘Circa’, formerly known as ‘Celeste’, is primarly a Roussanne blend (with some Marsanne now) with 80-year-old vines. It is now named after the Goddess, who, if angered, would turn people into dogs or pigs. The first vintage was produced in 2009 after Jean Louis bought the Les Clos Florentin vineyard in Saint Joseph. The vineyard had been owned for generations by a family of homeopathic doctors, so it was never touched with anything other than natural remedies. Jean Louis has now restored the iconic, walled, 2-hectare vineyard back to its original splendor, with blossoming fruit trees of every variety imaginable. Roussane does not tend to have a lot of natural acidity, so the granitic soil keeps it fresh and bright with great minerality. Since the white Hermitage vineyards are comprised of clay and limestone, this was the first white Jean-Louis worked with that came from granitic vineyards. Jean-Louis has been so impressed by this wine that he continues to plant more Roussane at other granitic vineyard sites he has on Chalet, just up the hill from Les Clos. 100/12 pack cases are imported into the US each year.

Saint Joseph ‘Offerus’
100 % Syrah. ‘Offerus’ is the name of St. Christopher before he was baptized. This was the first negociant project that Jean-Louis launched, with famed wine importer Kermit Lynch, back in 1995. However, the wine has gone from 100% sourced fruit to 99% estate-owned fruit as Jean-Louis continues to buy choice vineyard sites in the southern communes of Mauves, Tournon, and St. Jean de Muzols, in the ancient parts of the Saint Joseph appellation. He is also restoring previously abandoned family vineyard sites in this original part of Saint Joseph. All the younger vines that aren’t ready to go into the Domaine Saint Joseph go into the ‘Offerus’ bottling. Saint Joseph is at the end of the Massif Centrale and is famous for its granitic soil. The grapes are about 50% destemmed and fermented in a mix of stainless steel and barrique. 700/12 pack cases are imported into the US annually.

Hermitage Blanc ‘Blanche’
‘Blanche’ is named after Blanche de Castile, former Queen of France, who allowed the first vines to be planted on the hill of Hermitage. The vines are so old that though they think the blend is about 80% Marsanne and 20% Roussanne, they cannot be completely sure. The grapes come from the parcels in Péleat, Maison Blanche and L’Hermite. Péleat’s soil is made of sand and pebbles and gives finesse to the blend. It is also a monopole for Chave. Maison Blanche has red clay and loess and gives balance and high tone. L’Hermite is a patchwork of different soil types within one vineyard and provides great aromatics. Both this and the Hermitage Rouge ‘Farconnet’ have some purchased fruit from Bernard Faury as well Domaine fruit. This is a white Hermitage that has the lovely combination of being approachable young as well as having upwards of ten years of aging potential. The wine is fermented in barriques and then aged for 18-24 months. 200/12 pack cases are imported to the US each year.

Hermitage Rouge ‘Farconnet’
‘Farconnet’ is the name of the nobleman from whom Jean Louis’ great grandfather bought the Bessards parcel, which is the backbone of the Domaine Hermitage bottling. It is made up of fruit that did not make it into the Domaine bottling, as well as some purchased fruit from Bernard Faury. ‘Farconnet’ is sourced from three distinct parcels: Diognières, Péleat, and Greffieux. Péleat is a monopole for Chave and gives finesse to the blend with its sandy soil. Diognières is at the base of the hill on alluvial soil with many small pebbles, and gives spice and the finishing touch to the blend. Lastly, Greffieux sits at the base of Le Méal on the hill. The soil consists of rolled river stones brought by the glaciers and contributes structure to the finished wine. ‘Farconnet’ is fermented in tonneaux and stainless steel, and then aged in barriques for 18-24 months. 200 12/pack cases are imported to the US each year.

Domaine Chave Wines

Saint Joseph Rouge
The Domaine Saint Joseph comes from the Chave’s original plots in Mauves, as well as Jean Louis’ decade-long project to restore abandoned, ancient, terraced vineyards in the ancient part of the appellation. Sourced from the historic villages of the appellation before it was expanded – Tournon, Mauves, St.-Jean-de-Muzols and Lemps (which you can see across the river when you stand in the Hermitage vineyards). The wine is fermented in a combination of stainless steel and tonneau, and then aged in neutral oak for a little over a year. 400/6 pack cases are imported into the US annually.

Saint Joseph Rouge ‘Clos Florentin’
2015 was the first release of ‘Clos Florentin’ under the Domaine label (before that it was blended into the Domaine Saint Joseph). This is from a historic walled vineyard that Jean Louis purchased in 2009 in the villages of Mauves. The vineyard was owned for generations by a family of homeopathic doctors, so the vines were never treated with anything other than natural remedies. Besides very old vines of Roussane and Syrah, the Clos has an impressive garden full of a wide array of fruit trees, a veritable Garden of Eden. The Syrah vines in this bottling are over eighty years old. The wine is fermented in a combination of stainless steel and tonneau, and then aged in neutral oak for a little over a year. 100/6 pack case are imported annually into the US.

Hermitage Blanc
The Hermitage Blanc is primarily Marsanne, with about 20% Roussanne. The vines are so old that they don’t know the exact blend, however. The blend comes from several vineyard sites – Rocoules, L’Hermite, Péléat and Maison Blanche. Each vineyard has a unique geological profile and plays a role in the overall expression of the wine. Rocoules is in the middle of the hill next to Péléat and is comprised of rolled river stones like one sees in Chateauneuf-du-Pape. This is the backbone of the blend in part because of its incredible ageability. Péléat (a monopole for Chave) is clay with sand and pebbles and gives finesse. L’Hermite is red clay with Loess soil and gives aromatics to the blend. Finally, Maison Blanche, at the top of the hill, is clay and loess and sand. It is the friendliest part of the blend and brings balance and high-toned fruit. The wine is fermented in mostly neutral oak barrels and ages in oak for two years before release. 250/6pack cases are imported into the US annually.

Hermitage Rouge
The secret to Chave Hermitage rouge is the art of blending different vineyards into a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. There are seven vineyard sites that go into the blend, giving the wine its incredible complexity. Bessards, a steep, granitic hillside that provides strong minerality and elegance to the wine, is always the backbone of the blend. Baumes, a long, narrow vineyard running north and south in the middle of the hill of Hermitage, is made of pudding stone, and makes a lighter, fruitier Syrah with a velvety texture. L’Hermite is located at the top of the hill and surrounds the small Chapel, and for which Jaboulet’s Hermitage La Chapelle is named. The vineyard has a wide range of soil types, including loess and granite. The plots are often vinified separately from each other. Péléat is a monopole with sandy and stony soil, and provides firmness, finesse and complexity to the blend. Le Méal is one of the larger vineyards of Hermitage, just east of Bessards. It has looser, alluvial soils and produces riper, denser wines with plenty of structure and flesh. Diognieres, at the bottom of the hill, is alluvial soil and clay, and Greffieux, below Le Meal, is comprised of large river stones that the glaciers brought in and gives the finishing touch.

The grapes are mostly de-stemmed, because Jean Louis wants to express the individual vineyards and believes that whole cluster fermentation tends to level out the differences. Fermentation occurs in a combination of tonneau and stainless steel. Ageing is in mostly neutral oak for 30 months. 500/6pack cases are imported into the US annually.