Maison les Alexandrins
Saint-Joseph
White 2023
A bright and balanced white Saint-Joseph, combining mineral freshness, elegance and indulgence.
2023 was a year full of contrasts, which required great composure and experience to deal with the climatic hazards. The winter was mild followed by a wet spring then a summer oscillating between hailstorms and drought, before a complicated harvest period, between August 17 and September 20. A permanent risk of rain and unpredictable weather forecasts required us to constantly adapt our plans in order to harvest our grapes, of good quality and well concentrated in sugars, at their optimal phenolic maturity. At the end of the harvest, the meticulous work was more than rewarded: this very unusual vintage proved to be very promising, perfectly well balanced across all quality indicators. In the cellar, we are pleasantly surprised by the freshness of the whites. The terroirs resisted drought and offer magnificent balance. Low temperature fermentations helped preserve the aromatics. The reds required long macerations in order to extract all the essence of the vintage. The wines from the lowlands are crisp and delicate, the wines from the hills stand out for their density and the radiance brought by the granite. The aging period has now started, the wines will improve and the textures will slowly become more complex in the cellar.
Saint-Joseph’s terroir is mainly granite. The slopes that rise above the Rhône face east/south-east.
We wanted to make a balanced wine using grapes from the north of the appellation, to bring minerality and fruit, and berries from the historical centre of Saint-Joseph that add more flesh to the wine. The blend produces balanced, refined wines.
- Vinified in demi-muids (60-litre capacity barrels).
- Fermentation and ageing in demi-muids for 10 months.
Beautiful clear colour with shiny reflections. This wine opens with a precise, fresh and delicate nose with seductive aromas of citrus. Lively, precise and mineral, the palate shows a remarkable balance between freshness and vivacity, bitterness and acidity. It prolongs the delicate citrus notes, underlined by its beautiful saline minerality typical of the granite terroir, before revealing a subtly sappy character, the signature of Marsanne.