Of all the red wines of the RhĂ´ne Valley, there is one that has an unfortunate reputation. Cornas has often been accused of having a rustic or âanimalâ side to its character; rough round the edges with gamey aromas. But the new generation of winemakers is proving this neednât be the case. Cornas is now snapping at the heels of Hermitage and CĂ´te-RĂ´tie as a top site for Syrah in the RhĂ´ne. The only creature that comes to mind these days when tasting the finest Cornas is the Ugly Duckling.
Cornas lies on the west bank of the Northern RhĂ´ne, directly south of the long strip of vineyards that make up St Joseph, like the dot of an extended exclamation mark. It amounts to just 128 hectares of vines â so a little bit smaller than Hermitage (136ha). Like much of the greatest terroir of the RhĂ´ne, the best vineyards teeter on scorched south- or southeast-facing terraces of solid granite. Australian winemaker Mark Haisma makes a Cornas from grapes bought from a local grower; he holds the local vignerons in high esteem âthey work really hard⌠itâs pretty brutal.â
Most of the slopes are too steep or too narrow for tractors. Parts are too steep for horses, so they use ploughs attached to winches to work the soil. No wonder so many vineyards were abandoned during the early part of the 20th century. It was only in the second half of the last century that a handful of winemakers took it upon themselves to rebuild the appellation to its former glory. It was as late as the 1950s that any domaines even bottled their own wines.
No single producer owns much land. The biggest is Domaine du Coulet with 10ha, then Domaine Clape with 5.5ha. It is home to around fifty growers, five times as many as Hermitage. Historically, many of these tiny growers have produced wines as a secondary means of income or a hobby, so largely without formal training. Only the minority of producers make enough to justify investing in modern machinery â or scrupulous hygiene.This is the root cause of Cornasâs rustic reputation â old-fashioned winemaking that has only been addressed relatively recently. Not the terroir.
Maxime Graillot, winemaker at Domaine Alain Graillot, makes a powerful, clean and fruit-forward Cornas under his Equis label, and for him âthe new generation are changing the style.â Professional training and winemaking stages in other countries have led to a big jump in quality. Up-and-coming winegrower Vincent Paris is part of this new generation; though still in his early 30s, he is already co-president of the Cornas appellation. He recites a number of ways in which they have improved the wines: better vineyard management, improved temperature control, precision analysis in the cellar, controlled use of new oak, less sulphur, and â perhaps most importantly â replacing old oak barrels.
Alberic Mazoyer of stalwart Domaine Alain Voge admits that in the past some wines from Cornas had a problem with high levels of brettanomyces (or âbrettâ), a common strain of yeast that can lead to off-flavours, often described as stinky, animal, horsey or farmyardy. âItâs not goĂťt de terroir⌠itâs a problem of cleanlinessâ he says, and that the older the barrels, the higher the risk of unpalatable levels of brett. Sandrine Robert of modern Cornas producer Domaine du Tunnel agrees âitâs nothing to do with terroir⌠itâs the older generation who werenât changing their barrels regularly.â
Certain people are more sensitive to brett than others, and some believe small amounts can add complexity to a wine. âA little touch can be intriguing⌠it gives a lift, an interestâ says Haisma â but too much can be unpleasant: âI call it the poxâ. He points out that Syrah is particularly susceptible to brett as it often has a relatively high pH. Other winemaking practices that have previously caused rough edges and rusticity have been phased out by the majority of producers: no more chestnut barrels, use of green stems or rough working of the cap.
These changes have been gradually taking place for some time, but since Cornas is such a small and fragmented appellation, it has taken a while for the wider world to become aware. Mazoyer points out that only in the last 10 years have the big nĂŠgociant houses of Chapoutier and Jaboulet owned vineyards in Cornas. These larger businesses have the marketing clout to make the wider world take notice – âthe reputation has changed because of themâ he says.
Not every domaine has changed their winemaking. Auguste Clape was the first to bottle Cornas â as late as 1955. Although the winemaking is now in the hands of his grandson Olivier, little has changed. The wines are still fermented in unlined raw cement tanks âthe same stuff they use to make gravestonesâ Olivier says. Whereas many producers are moving away from using 100% stems Clape still does not destem at all; he keeps fermentations short with a quick punching down by foot twice a day. He admits their wines are âmore old styleâ but he believes this very basic handling, with no destemming or new oak helps display âthe real terroirâ. The wines have a rugged, burly swagger, but this is a character many enjoy, and look for in Cornas. It would certainly be a shame to lose this style completely. His 2010 is a force of nature.
Others look for different expressions of the terroir: Haisma finds âminerality, and sweet opulence of Syrah fruitâ. Vincent Paris retains the savoury edge and traditional heft of Cornas, but without any farmyard overtones. The wines of Domaine du Tunnel display the characteristic power but backed up with ripe, fleshy, vibrant fruitiness. This burgeoning multiplicity of styles will only grow as more vineyards are planted. According to Paris, the area under vine is increasing by around 3ha every year, and it has the potential to increase in size to 200â250ha, so a little smaller than CĂ´te-RĂ´tie (275ha). Much of the land left to plant is at the top of the slopes, which bodes well for future quality. Cornas has much more to give. And while it still lacks the cachet of the other big names of the RhĂ´ne, the wines remain comparatively good value.
Like the Ugly Duckling, it has taken some time for the excellence of Cornas to be recognised. Due to its innate power and burliness, it might never turn into a graceful swan â it is a robust style of Syrah that wonât please everybody. In the words of Olivier Clape âif you want to understand Cornas, you need to taste other wines before. Itâs not completely round and charming.â Finesse is not its calling card; its character asserts itself in other ways. Many agree that the best reds of CĂ´te-RĂ´tie are now regularly comparable with those of Hermitage. The next to join them will be Cornas.
Some excellent Cornas domaines
Thierry Allemand
MickaĂŤl Bourg
Clape
du Coulet
Courbis
Eric et JoĂŤl Durand
Guillaume Gilles
Marcel Juge
Johann Michel
Vincent Paris
du Tunnel
Alain Voge