Côtes-du-Rhône Rouge "Brézème" Eric Texier 2022

Eric Texier,  Charnay

Despite having no experience or contacts in wine, he decided to give up a career as a nuclear engineer and study winemaking in 1992, interning with Jean-Marie Guffens at Verget in Mâcon. Lacking the network to buy his own vineyard, Eric served his time with established winemakers then made négoce wines with the fruit of like-minded purists until he was introduced to François Pouchoulin – AKA ‘the Godfather of Brézème’. Eric was fascinated by the history of this tiny enclave on the southernmost edge of the Northern Rhône, on the left bank of the river. South- facing, at 300m of elevation, it has limestone-rich clay soils that grow rockier as the slope rises. In the mid-19th century, its wines rivalled those of Hermitage, but by 1961 just a single hectare remained. With Pouchoulin’s help and guidance, Texier eventually succeeded in purchasing a tiny parcel of vines in Brézème. Many years later, he has now put the Brézème appellation firmly back on the map and is its leading grower. After Brézème, Eric and his wife Laurence (the backbone of their business – they are very much a team and travel everywhere together) purchased another tiny plot, this time in the Ouvèze valley of the Ardèche, on the right bank of the Rhone. This site has granite soils, sits at a higher altitude than Brézème and has higher growing temperatures. According to Eric, both of these classic Northern Rhone plots had almost been forgotten because of their isolated geographic position and small surface areas. Today, Eric and Laurence have 12ha under cultivation, with vines aged from 30 to 90 years old on both sides of the Rhone, all of which are worked organically. This is not a sudden conversion or a response to trend: Eric has worked organically since the beginning. He also follows some biodynamic principles, but is not dogmatic about it.

From Texier's younger (20-40-year-old) vines, planted on a south-facing, limestone marl slope of the Brézème zone (on eastern side of the Rhône River at the southern edge of the northern Rhône Valley). They are organically farmed and harvested by hand. The vinification and aging are identical to Texier's St Julien bottling and thus purely expressive of the cooler, less solar, more limestone-rich Brézème terroir: whole-cluster fermentation with native yeasts in open concrete tanks with no sulfur and a 6-8-day maceration; no extraction techniques (only a submerged cap for gentle infusion of color and flavor); aging in concrete tanks on the fine lees for 18-24 months with no racking; bottling is without fining or filtration and with a minute dose of sulfur. 

The aromas unfold with hints of smoke, pepper, blackberry, and licorice. A subtle note of black tea adds complexity. The taste features classic 'Syrah' characteristics – black berries and spices.

Grape: 100% Syrah

Organic