Les Alexandrins Maison Crozes-Hermitage Blanc 2018
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Pretty pale golden yellow colour with shiny undertones. The nose is fine and elegant, revealing delicate notes of white flowers, citrus and fresh vegetables like fennel and some sweet notes of noble wood. On the palate, the attack is fresh and generous, with a nice balance between the fruit, the discreet oak ageing and notes of red fruit, peach and pear. The finish is long with a beautiful aromatic and saline persistence.Drink young as an aperitif with prawns.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
Unctuous in feel, with creamed papaya, pear and white peach flavors, coated with a lemon shortbread note and carrying through the lush, citrus oil–accented finish. Best from 2022 through 2035.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Not yet bottled, the 2018 Crozes-Hermitage Blanc checks in as a blend of 65% Marsanne and 35% Roussanne, from 20-year-old vines and a mix of soils from throughout the appellation. Its medium gold color is followed by a classic bouquet of stone fruits, honeyed citrus, white flowers, and a hint of brioche. It's beautifully textured, medium-bodied, and balanced, and is another incredibly high-quality wine from this team.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The barrel-fermented and matured 2018 Hermitage Blanc Maison Les Alexandrins is a ripe, rich example. Notes of honey and melon spread languorously across the full-bodied palate, easing into a broad, mouth-coating finish. A blend of Marsanne and Roussanne, it should be consumed over the next few years, although it might also look interesting sometime after 2030.
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James Suckling
Spiced-pear and baked-apple aromas lead to a palate that has a rich, fresh, melon and pear core with deep, soft and fleshy texture.
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Maison & Domaine Les Alexandrins is the story of three friends combining the savoir-faire they learn from their parents and grandparents and the fruits from beautiful and historic terroirs. Nicolas Jaboulet, the 6th generation of a wine growing family in Tain l’Hermitage, Guillaume Sorrel, son of Marc Sorrel of Domaine Sorrel in Hermitage, and Alexandre Caso, a specialist in the terroirs of the Northern Rhône, joined forces in 2012. They began working parcel by parcel in Crozes-Hermitage for the wines of Maison Nicolas Perrin. In 2015, the name was changed to Domaine et Maison Les Alexandrins. Today, Maison and Domaine Les Alexandrins produces Northern Rhône wines that are true and classic expressions of the Northern Rhône.
Full-bodied and flavorful, white Rhône blends originate from France’s Rhône Valley. Today these blends are also becoming popular in other regions. Typically some combination of Grenache Blanc, Marsanne, Roussanne and Viognier form the basis of a white Rhône blend with varying degrees of flexibility depending on the exact appellation. Somm Secret—In the Northern Rhône, blends of Marsanne and Roussanne are common but the south retains more variety. Marsanne, Roussanne as well as Bourboulenc, Clairette, Picpoul and Ugni Blanc are typical.
Crozes-Hermitage is Northern Rhone’s largest appellation, surrounding the steep granite faces of Hermitage to its north and south. Here the rolling vineyards are less extreme and its soils, rich in clay-limestone and alluvial matter, produce Syrahs that range from fruity and charming to lush and seductive. The Syrahs of Crozes-Hermitage have more mass than those from St. Joseph but are less intense than those from Hermitage. While many are intended for early consumption, some of the best Syrahs from Crozes-Hermitage will age beautifully for 5-10 years.
Up to 15% of white grapes may theoretically be added to red Crozes at the time of fermentation but whether this is done or not depends on the decision of the winemaker. The best Crozes-Hermitage Syrahs will be fleshy with black fruit (currant, blackberry and black cherry) and bay leaf qualities, notes of tar and stone, and a well-concentrated finish of smooth tannins.
About a tenth of the wine produced in Crozes-Hermitage is white, primarily composed of Marsanne supplemented by smaller amounts of Roussanne.