Stephane Ogier: “2015 in Cote Rotie? It’s all down to the grapes, and it’s going to be magical”

Stéphane Ogier

After the magnificent Viogniers harvested for his Condrieu, Stéphane Ogier has just completed gathering in the grapes on all of his 26 plots spread across 18 localities on the Côte Rôtie. We got the feedback on a harvest of truly great quality.

Can you tell us a bit about this 2015 harvest?
Stéphane Ogier: “We finished with Montmain, Leyat and Fongeant, which were picked on Saturday September 12, just before the storm which broke at the end of the day. The crop was remarkably healthy, no doubt thanks to the weather in August which fortunately was cooler than the very hot, dry months that we experienced in June and July. I’ve been totally overwhelmed by the quality of the grapes from the high plateau terroirs. Amazingly, certain plots that can be slightly inferior in some years have given absolutely superb results in 2015. There’s not a single plot that I would qualify as “lesser”. They go from very good to exceptional whether it’s Village or Premier Crus, right up to the very highest level.”

It reminds you of which other vintage? 1961? 1990?
Stéphane Ogier: “It’s tricky to say exactly what it’s like. I didn’t make 1990 or 1991 wine, let alone the 1961 vintage, so I’ll leave it to others to comment on them; I’m just happy to drink them ! But samplings of the first vats of Côte Rôtie confirm that this has all the makings of a very great vintage. We already sensed it when checking maturity before harvest, but now we’re sure. I’ve never seen balance like it. We’re not dealing with an ‘extreme’ vintage like 2003, there is better balance. There’s all the richness of the 1999 and 2009 vintages but with even more density and balance. What we can say is that the hierarchy of the crus is perfectly respected: all the Premier Crus are genuinely a notch above what will go into the Côte Rôtie “Village” and what will make up the Côte Rôtie “Lancement” and “Belle Hélène” (because both these wines will be included in the 2015 vintage for sure) genuinely represents the very best of this appellation.

What are your winemaking choices for the 2015 vintage?
Stéphane Ogier: “This year, we opted for whole-cluster vinification for Côte Rozier and many other terroirs. There’s not a hint of vegetal character; this vintage really deserves it when you see the power, the richness and the density of the wines. Then, just like every year, it’s simply a question of helping nature get to work. In any case, we had barely got the grapes into the vats and it was already black! So our intervention is minimal, we let things take their course – no punching down, no excessive extraction. It’s all down to the grapes, and it’s going to be magical.”

Watch the Film with Stephane Ogier: “Born in Cote Rotie