Maison Les Alexandrins Saint-Joseph - 2015

Saint Joseph was originally called “Vin de Tournon”. The monks who lived in this little village used to produce wine from the vineyard at the top of the hill behind the village.

The terroir in Saint Joseph is mainly composed of granite. The vineyard spreads out 40km along the right bank of the Rhône river. For our first vintage we wanted to make a balanced wine using grapes from the north of the appellation, which bring minerality and fruit, and ones from the historical centre of Saint Joseph that give more flesh to the wine. The blending makes wines with great distinction and extremely balanced.

For the appellations of the northern Rhone Valley, 2015 was a truly exceptional year, almost without precedent!
After a mild, wet winter and particularly high temperatures in spring, summer brought a heatwave even hotter than 2003. Welcome rain arrived in abundance in mid-August, followed anew by glorious sunshine and a providential wind that guaranteed perfect sanitary conditions and a regular and rapid ripening of the grapes. And so the harvest benefited from optimum conditions during the first two weeks of September.

In the north of the appellation, the villages of St Pierre de Boeuf and Chavanay.
For the historical centre of the appellation, the village of Mauves south of Tournon.

The grapes are cold-macerated before being fermented to increase the aromas of fruit. Maceration and fermentation for about 20 days with pumping-over for the first few days followed by punching-down. Ageing in 1 and 2 year old barrels for 10 months to bring concentration to the wine.