The ancestral home of Syrah, grapevines have been cultivated on these steep slopes for centuries – perhaps millennia, given the Roman settlements nearby dating back to the first century BC. The reds here vary greatly based on only a kilometer distance, slightly rotated sun exposure, and the transition from granite to schist to limestone/silica. As one of my friends might say, “you can taste the dirt.”  But these are not crude wines by any means – the Cote-Rotie are powerful, sun-drenched and perhaps needing a while in the bottle, but assertive in an elegant way. Further downstream, the wines from Hermitage show a deft hand, and an understanding of patience. 

Our first, random and lucky stop in the north was with a local shopkeeper who’s father has been a winemaker in this district for ages explained the different micro regions. 
 

With that knowledge in-hand, we sallied forth. 

These, by the way, are rain flowers. Like sunflowers, only sadder and damp. We have yet to see actual “sun”flowers. 

Steep hillsides here with unusual vine training. Reminiscent of Portugal, but with a bit more elbow room and finer wines.  

Ring bell for service. Gladly. 

These wines rang the bell, as well. And a very pleasant host. 

That stop was also random, but we had a few appointments to keep: Domaine Semaska and Domaine de Monteillet. Both very good, with a slight nod  towards the wines of Monteillet. Plus a very kind host who undressed slightly to help improve our French, sorry, no photos of that. 

Just north of where we were staying is a weekly, massive farmers’ market. So we went. And found breakfast amongst the stalls, along with espresso and a 2100+ year old Roman temple to Augustus. 

Beer! They have some. It’s still only okay. The double IPA was the most bitter thing I’ve consumed in a long time.  “Hooray” for trying.

We managed to add another Michelin star to our starry night. (I spent some time lounging and watching Le Tour, first, naturally.)  This was a fantastic meal, and we gave ourselves over to the Sommelier for the wine pairings. So glad we did!