Considerably south of Côte-Rôtie and on the opposite bank of the Rhône River lie the adjacent appellations of Hermitage and Crozes-Hermitage. Due to a propitious bend in the river, the vineyards here enjoy a sun-capturing south-facing exposition. While made from Syrah like its neighbor to the north, Hermitage tends to be more massive in size, more powerful in its palate impact. For this reason, for most of the 19th century, casks of Hermitage were routinely shipped to Bordeaux to beef up what otherwise would have been thin, reedy wines. With such practices long rendered obsolete, Hermitage,   More

Considerably south of Côte-Rôtie and on the opposite bank of the Rhône River lie the adjacent appellations of Hermitage and Crozes-Hermitage. Due to a propitious bend in the river, the vineyards here enjoy a sun-capturing south-facing exposition. While made from Syrah like its neighbor to the north, Hermitage tends to be more massive in size, more powerful in its palate impact. For this reason, for most of the 19th century, casks of Hermitage were routinely shipped to Bordeaux to beef up what otherwise would have been thin, reedy wines. With such practices long rendered obsolete, Hermitage, when grown and vinified by the likes of a Jean-Louis Chave, can now take its place among the very elite of French wines, fully the equal of the finest Bordeaux and Burgundy. Hermitage Blanc, made primarily from Marsanne, can be equally striking in its own way.

Crozes-Hermitage, though it jubilantly expresses the exuberance of the Syrah grape, can never attain the lofty heights scaled by Hermitage itself, but it acquits itself quite nicely as a lovely, fairly-priced drink. White Crozes, a Marsanne-Roussanne, can be very pleasant too.   Less