Crozes-Hermitage: Before Graillot. After Graillot.
“For many wine lovers this is the touchstone producer of Crozes-Hermitage.” – Vinous
It’s hard to believe today, but there was a time when the Crozes-Hermitage appellation was considered the ‘ugly duckling’ of the Northern Rhône. As a contrast to the ‘roasted slopes’ of Côte-Rôtie, the might of the Hermitage hill and terraced beauty of Saint Joseph, the gravelling and flat plains of Crozes-Hermitage were once better known for its fruit trees than vineyard.
That was before Graillot.
Alain Graillot founded the domaine in 1985, with his formative years spent as a chemical engineer. He’d long enjoyed wine, but knew little of the business and how to make it. He was however inspired by friends and mentors in Burgundy, relationships garnered through their respective love of competitive skiing. He encountered the principles of organic viticulture and whole-cluster fermentation for finesse and aromatics, working with older and neutral French oak vessels. All fresh concepts at the time, in an era fashioned by bigger is better, not least in the Shiraz bottlings that were gaining headlines out of the Barossa.
Alain admits the timing was good. The maiden vintage ‘85 vintage was stellar, and it was a year when the business of wine was becoming global, “a moment when many people from the US and other countries decided to find more wines than the traditional suppliers that they have.” Graillot’s wines made for a compelling introduction to the wines to the Northern Rhône and archetype Syrah in general.
Crucially, he would mentor countless local vignerons, encouraging them to stop selling grapes to the local co-op and go it on their own. Outside of France, his influence would impact the shape of Cape Syrah, and the ‘Rhône Ranger’ movement in California.
During his time living and working in Burgundy, Alex Dale notes it was rare to find a non-Burgundian label on the wine lists at the local bars and bistros.
“The one exception was the Crozes-Hermitage from this chap named Alain Graillot, which was on all the good lists in Beaune, and was of such incredible value. I later started importing wine into South Africa and I set out to meet Alain.. We immediately connected and Alain became a mentor to me, in terms of his ethos, exemplary humility and dedication to the values of simplicity, decency, authenticity – and, of course, unadulterated wine.”
Since 2008, Alain Graillot’s son Maxime has taken on chief duties at the domaine. Alain would pass away in 2022 at the age of 77 (pictured below), with a dinner held in Cape Town with industry peers to celebrate his life and work over a spread of vintages from Alex’s cellar.
Domaine Alain Graillot
The latest 2023 releases have just landed, and they’re a knockout. “If I could repeat 2023 for the rest of my life, I’d be very happy—both in terms of quantity and quality.” says Maxime. After a spell of warm vintages, “in 2023, we finally achieved slow ripening and excellent phenolic maturity”.
It’s a winning combination for the Alain Graillot wines, which Maxime continues to ferment 100% whole cluster as favoured by his father. Trademark lines of spice and pepper, wrapped up in a vintage offering excellent contrast in bright fruit and varietal perfume.
Domaine des Lises
Domaine des Lises launched in 2004, in the next door cellar also run by Maxime Graillot, from separately owned vineyards. There are differences between the two domain, but the important shift is to less whole-cluster fermentation, typically around 30%. This approach yielding wines built more on fruit purity and curves.
