Northern Rhône: Syrah and Viognier Country

Winemaking in the Northern Rhône traces to ancient times: according to Inter Rhône, Roman writers Martial and Pliny the Elder, along with Greek biographer Plutarch, lauded the wines of Côte-Rôtie, calling them the "wines of Vienne", and the first written documentation mentioning Ampuis and Côte-Rôtie by name dates back to the 6th century. INAO's Côte-Rôtie specification links the vineyard's early development to the Roman peace, which allowed the Allobroges, whose territory included part of the right bank opposite Vienne, to acquire Roman citizenship and with it the right to plant vines. Inter Rhône lists Henry IV, Louis XIII, Louis XIV, Nicolas II and Alexandre Dumas among the enthusiasts of Hermitage. INAO describes the story of Henri Gaspard de Stérimberg, a knight returning from the Albigensian crusade who settled on the hill around 1224 as its first hermit, as apocryphal, while the archives of Tain-l'Hermitage confirm several hermits on the hill from 1598. In the 19th century phylloxera destroyed much of the Côte-Rôtie vineyard, and the First World War and the industrialisation of the Rhône valley then drastically reduced the labour the steep slopes need (INAO). By 1960, only about 60 hectares remained planted in Côte-Rôtie, according to Inter Rhône. Maison Guigal was founded in 1946 by Etienne Guigal in Ampuis, and Jancis Robinson's site credits Marcel Guigal's single-vineyard wines with making a name for the whole appellation.

• INAO's Côte-Rôtie specification records the appellation's recognition by the decree of 18 October 1940 on the communes of Ampuis and Tupin-Semons, extended in 1966 to Saint-Cyr-sur-le-Rhône
• Hermitage was first recognised as an appellation of origin by the Valence tribunal on 25 June 1936 and as a controlled appellation by the decree of 4 March 1937 (INAO specification)
• Inter Rhône records that some 150 local winegrowers from Côte-Rôtie were killed in the First World War and a number of slopes were subsequently abandoned
• Condrieu's revival started in the 1980s thanks to the efforts of a handful of winegrowers, and in 1986 the AOC boundaries were revised to retain only the slopes with the best exposure (Inter Rhône)

The Northern Rhône follows the Rhône south from Vienne to Valence, and Inter Rhône names Côte-Rôtie, a few miles from Lyon, as the northernmost appellation in the Rhône Valley. Most of the crus lie on the right bank, while Hermitage and Crozes-Hermitage lie on the left bank around Tain-l'Hermitage (Inter Rhône). Inter Rhône describes abrupt slopes with steep gradients in the northern part of the valley, with terraced plots, and main soil types of clay, rocky and granite soils; it traces the granitic rocks of the northern Rhône to volcanic activity in the Massif Central three hundred million years ago. The climate is largely continental with Mediterranean influences, according to Inter Rhône, which describes Côte-Rôtie's climate as similar to that of Lyon, with mild winters, hot summers and relatively regular rainfall. Inter Rhône's Crozes-Hermitage profile describes an almost constant wind drying the air along the Rhône corridor, and its Cornas profile describes a semicircle of hills protecting the vineyard from the Mistral wind. Jancis Robinson's site notes that some vineyards are so steep that pulley systems have to be used for grapes and equipment.

• INAO's Côte-Rôtie specification places the Côte Blonde on a substrate mostly of gneiss giving light-coloured siliceous soils, and the Côte Brune on mica schists giving darker, more clay-rich soils richer in iron
• Inter Rhône describes Condrieu's vineyards clinging to the parent rock in long, narrow terraces called chayées, with granite at the deepest part of the rocky outcrops
• Inter Rhône describes Hermitage as granitic sand with a covering of mica-schists and gneiss, with named plots including Bessards, Greffieux, Méal, Rocoules and Beaumes
• Cornas lies on steep slopes facing east and south-east at altitudes of 125 to 400 m, 7 km from Valence, and its soil is chiefly decomposed granite, giving sandy clay soils known as gores (Inter Rhône)

Syrah is the only red variety in the northern crus: INAO's Hermitage specification names Syrah, Marsanne and Roussanne as the only varieties authorised in the northern appellations on that bank of the Rhône, and Inter Rhône notes that Cornas is made from Syrah alone. Northern Rhône Syrah is characterised by black and red fruit, pepper and spice in the official descriptions: Inter Rhône cites spice, red and black berry fruit and violets for Côte-Rôtie, spicy, peppery aromas with a touch of violet for Saint-Joseph, and black fruit maturing to a spicy, liquorice finish for Cornas. According to INAO, DNA tests by J.M. Boursicot of INRA Montpellier have shown the Rhône origin of Syrah, a cross of Mondeuse Blanche (mondeuse B) and Dureza. Inter Rhône notes that Côte-Rôtie is the only red cru in the northern Côtes du Rhône to plant Viognier alongside Syrah, and Jancis Robinson's site adds that in practice most Côte Rôtie is 100 per cent Syrah. Condrieu and Château-Grillet are 100% Viognier whites (INAO), and Marsanne and Roussanne make the whites of Hermitage, Crozes-Hermitage, Saint-Joseph and Saint-Péray.

• INAO's Côte-Rôtie specification says Viognier is interplanted more often on the Côte Blonde than on the Côte Brune
• Inter Rhône describes Condrieu as fresh and highly aromatic, with floral perfumes, particularly violets, and fruity notes of mango, white peach and apricot
• Hermitage may carry the additional mention vin de paille (INAO), a sweet wine made from dried grapes that Jancis Robinson's site calls a speciality
• Saint-Péray makes still and sparkling whites from Marsanne and Roussanne; Inter Rhône credits Louis-Alexandre Faure with the first Saint-Péray sparkling wine in 1829

Jancis Robinson's site names the three biggest producers of the northern Rhône as Marcel Guigal of Côte Rôtie, Michel Chapoutier, who practises biodynamic viticulture, and Paul Jaboulet Aîné, a Hermitage specialist sold by the Jaboulet family to the Frey family of Château La Lagune in 2005. Maison Guigal was founded in 1946 by Etienne Guigal in Ampuis and Marcel and Philippe Guigal, together with their spouses, are today the guardians of the house, according to Guigal. Guigal's Côte-Rôtie La Mouline comes from a vineyard in the heart of the Côte Blonde, and La Turque from Côte Brune terroirs, according to the house; Jancis Robinson's site credits the La-La wines' long maturation in new oak and low yields for their appeal. Jancis Robinson's site also names Jean-Louis Chave among the family domaines in and around Tain and Tournon, and Decanter lists Domaine Jean-Louis Chave among the producers in the village of Mauves. Inter Rhône describes Côte-Rôtie's growers as a group of around one hundred winemakers and their 60 estates.

• Guigal's La Mouline blends 89% Syrah and 11% Viognier, La Turque 93% Syrah and 7% Viognier, and La Landonne is 100% Syrah; all three are aged 40 months in new oak (Guigal)
• According to Guigal, La Landonne was planted in 1975, the year of Philippe Guigal's birth
• Guigal took over Jean-Louis Grippat and de Vallouit in 2001 and bought the Domaine de Bonserine in Ampuis in March 2006 (Guigal)
• INAO's Château-Grillet specification records extensions that brought the estate to 3 hectares 69 ares 16 centiares in 1979, and Inter Rhône notes that the appellation now has only one owner

Inter Rhône groups eight Côtes du Rhône crus under the Northern Rhône Valley: Côte-Rôtie, Condrieu, Château-Grillet, Saint-Joseph, Crozes-Hermitage, Hermitage, Cornas and Saint-Péray. Each has its own INAO specification setting grape varieties and production rules, and INAO's Saint-Joseph specification notes that the Côtes du Rhône AOC, recognised on 19 November 1937, covers communes between Ampuis and Avignon. Inter Rhône gives the INAO recognition years as 1936 for Château-Grillet and Saint-Péray, 1937 for Crozes-Hermitage and Hermitage, 1938 for Cornas, 1940 for Côte-Rôtie and Condrieu, and 1956 for Saint-Joseph. Côte-Rôtie permits Syrah with Viognier interplanted up to 20% of the vines, and Cornas permits only Syrah (INAO). Saint-Joseph was recognised in 1956 on 6 communes around Tournon and extended in 1969 to 20 more communes, and Inter Rhône now describes it as 23 communes in the Ardèche and 3 in the Loire. Château-Grillet, which INAO calls one of the smallest French AOCs, is recognised only for Viognier white wines.

• Côte-Rôtie is recognised for red wines only, and its specification requires Syrah to make up at least 80% of each blend (INAO)
• Hermitage spans the communes of Tain-l'Hermitage, Crozes-Hermitage and Larnage in the Drôme, on the left bank of the Rhône (Inter Rhône)
• Crozes-Hermitage was created in 1937 on the village of the same name alone, and the 10 surrounding communes were included in 1952 (Inter Rhône)
• Condrieu was recognised on 27 April 1940 on the communes of Condrieu, Vérin and Saint-Michel-sur-Rhône, and in 1967 the zone was extended to Chavanay, Malleval, Saint-Pierre-de-Bœuf and Limony (INAO)

Decanter's Matt Walls names Ampuis, at the heart of Côte-Rôtie, and Condrieu as the two small towns to know at the northern end of the region. Tain-l'Hermitage and Tournon sit on either side of the Rhône, connected by a bridge, and Decanter recommends either as a base for exploring the Northern Rhône. Guigal acquired the Château d'Ampuis in 1995 and opened Le Caveau du Château, a wine tourism space with a museum, in January 2020 (Guigal). Inter Rhône points visitors to the January wine market in Ampuis as a major annual event for Côte-Rôtie. In Tain, Decanter notes that Chapoutier and Cave de Tain both have boutiques where visitors can plan tours or walks around the vineyards. Most wineries are small, family-run domaines, and Decanter advises always booking in advance.

• Decanter names April to July as the best time to visit, noting that many producers are on holiday in August and concentrating on the new vintage in September
• Lyon Saint-Exupéry Airport is an hour's drive from Ampuis and an hour and a half from Tain, and Grenoble Isère Airport is an hour's drive from both (Decanter)
• Decanter suggests a walk up to the ruined Château de Crussol above Saint-Péray
• Decanter describes the village of Mauves, between Tournon and Cornas, as home to an inordinate number of excellent producers

Primary sources (INAO, Inter Rhône at vins-rhone.com, and Maison Guigal for its own history and wines): https://www.vins-rhone.com/en/cotes-du-rhone-cru-aoc-cote-rotie, https://www.vins-rhone.com/en/cotes-du-rhone-cru-aoc-condrieu, https://www.vins-rhone.com/en/cotes-du-rhone-cru-aoc-chateau-grillet, https://www.vins-rhone.com/en/cotes-du-rhone-cru-aoc-saint-joseph, https://www.vins-rhone.com/en/cotes-du-rhone-cru-aoc-crozes-hermitage, https://www.vins-rhone.com/en/cotes-du-rhone-cru-aoc-hermitage, https://www.vins-rhone.com/en/cotes-du-rhone-cru-aoc-cornas, https://www.vins-rhone.com/en/cotes-du-rhone-cru-aoc-saint-peray, https://www.vins-rhone.com/en/territory-and-terroir, https://www.vins-rhone.com/en/wine-school/history-vineyards, https://www.vins-rhone.com/en/rhone-valley-vineyards/grape-varieties, https://www.vins-rhone.com/en/rhone-valley-vineyards, https://extranet.inao.gouv.fr/fichier/PNO2023AOPCornas.pdf, https://extranet.inao.gouv.fr/fichier/PNO2023SaintJoseph.pdf, https://extranet.inao.gouv.fr/fichier/PNO2023AOPCondrieu.pdf, https://extranet.inao.gouv.fr/fichier/PNO2023AOPChateauGrillet.pdf, https://extranet.inao.gouv.fr/fichier/PNO2024AOPCrozesHermitage.pdf, https://extranet.inao.gouv.fr/fichier/PNO2023AOPCoteRotie.pdf, https://extranet.inao.gouv.fr/fichier/PNO2024AOPHermitage.pdf, https://extranet.inao.gouv.fr/fichier/PNO2025AOPSaintPeray.pdf, https://www.guigal.com/en/maison-guigal/our-history/, https://www.guigal.com/en/wine/cote-rotie-la-mouline/, https://www.guigal.com/en/wine/cote-rotie-la-landonne/, https://www.guigal.com/en/wine/cote-rotie-la-turque/. The INAO specification PDFs are the versions published for the national opposition procedure (2023 to 2025). Secondary sources: https://www.decanter.com/wine-travel/exploring-the-northern-rhone-471726/, https://www.jancisrobinson.com/learn/wine-regions/france/northern-rhone. Last verified 2026-09-24