Only a Little. Only the Best

It was the Crozes of the show, edging out the wines of Graillot and Combier. But we'd been visiting the cellars of the northern Rhone for almost two decades and had never even heard of Domaine de la Ville Rouge. This 2006 was deep purple, muscular, wonderfully rich and brooding -- and clean as a whistle. Where did this luscious Syrah come from?

The world isn't being kind to many of the world's young, passionate winemakers. Many are already saddled with debt and have walked right into the jaws of the global crisis. Sales have slowed, but for most of these entrepreneurial winegrowers, they can't lower prices. Their bankers won't have it.

In the case of Ville Rouge, we discovered another brilliant young winemaker. But Sebastien Girard has a luxury that most don't. When he returned to his family's estate in Crozes-Hermitage, the investment had already been made and paid off. His family's precious Syrah vineyards, from the most pristine portion of Crozes-Hermitage, were mature, and there was no shortage of buyers for the fruit. A quick call to Guigal and Chapoutier and poof-- it was gone.

"I'm lucky," the young winemaker told us as we trudged over the galets roules that cover the vineyards on the Chassis plain. "Lots of my friends had to move forward too fast. They sometimes have no choice but to cut corners. But for me, there's no hurry. I just make a few bottles from the our best parcels. At this stage, we're not making wine to make money. We're making wine to make wine perfectly."

The best wines of Crozes-Hermitage come from this Chassis plain at the southern end of the appellation. The vineyards are covered with galets roules. The soil underneath is a mix of granite and sand. The best producers have 25-40 acres and make 5,000-10,000 cases of Crozes. Sebastien Girard's family's domain is of similar size. When Sebastien returned home, fresh off a winemaking stint with the Courbis brothers in St. Joseph, the family took a cautious plunge. The young Girard made a little wine. Not much -- only 800 cases -- and only the best.

Tasting Notes
"Ville Rouge's gorgeous 2006 Crozes-Hermitage Inspiration is a serious wine. Its deep ruby/purple color is accompanied by notes of melted road tar, incense, burning embers, tapenade, and black currant liqueur. Superb concentration, full body, silky tannin, and a layered, complex personality suggest it should be consumed over the next 7-8 years. Drink 2009-2017"
90 points-- Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate