The very top class, as is the rule! Major delight ahead!
The vintage

Understanding and succeeding this vintage required, indeed, presence in the Vineyard, careful work, experience, and even, clearly, a genuine expertise...
Winter temperatures amongst the mildest in the decade, rainfall amounts amongst the highest ever in winter, among the lowest ever in spring, and a nice output of grapes throughout the Rhone cépages : everything would raise hope of an early vintage, the ever expected Vintage, satisfactory both in terms of quantity and of quality ! But it was not counting on an unusually cool and rainy summer... Vignerons are soon confronted with quite a few difficulties, the trickiest one being the management of diseases…
North winds coupled with a lovely late summer make forget this atypical summer. The grapes reach an excellent phenolic maturity. Les Vins Blancs are of very high level, in line with the preceding Vintage.
2014 demanded, especially during the final weeks, hard, incessant work. The vines were in demand. It was crucial to understand, to be able to anticipate...This required a bit of wisdom, reason, intuition...
A vintage for Vignerons, indeed. And the best ones did perform with talent. They are now rewarded. As for the others, alas... There, is the whole difference !

Terroir

Pierrelles, Beaumes, Murets.

Type of soil

Clayey granitic.

Ageing

Ageing 24 months in new and one year old barrels. Tronçais et Allier.

Serving

14°C
Decant 2 hours before tasting.

Tasting

This wine already impresses by its refined fruitiness, its "touch" in the mouth.

Alcohol content

13,5%

Bottling

Without fining and light filtration.

Cépages

Marsanne : 80 %
Roussanne : 20 %

On the face of it, this looks quite a good buy relative to the red. Mid greenish gold. Nervy nose. Strongly herbal – broom? Medium intensity. Excellent weight and grip with refined smoky finish and strong granitic streak. One of the most youthful wines in this range of TL 2014s.

Jancis Robinson , 17+/20 , 2015-10-30

Bright yellow. An expansive, highly perfumed bouquet evokes ripe orchard fruits, dried fig and honey, while anise and mineral accents add vibrancy and lift. Silky and seamless on the palate, offering juicy nectarine and Anjou pear flavors supported by juicy acidity. Finishes subtly smoky and very long, with firm mineral cut and a suave floral nuance.

Josh Raynolds
Vinous , 92-93/100 , 2016-02-01

Entre élégance naturelle, finesse de grain et parfaite lecture de leurs appellations respectives, les vins présentés confortent notre idée selon laquelle il s'écrit ici un hommage aux grands vins du Rhône.

Guide Bettane et Desseauve des vins de France 2017 , 17/20 , 2016-09-01

Assez classique, reste un rien marqué par son élevage à ce stade, malgré un joli fruit charnu. Tous les éléments fusionneront avec le temps. Patience.

Guide RVF 2017 , 16/20 , 2016-09-01