2023 Domaine A. Clape, Cotes du Rhone

The Domaine Auguste Clape Côtes du Rhône is sourced from a deliberate selection of young-vine Syrah within Cornas and older-vine parcels situated on clay and granite soils just outside the appellation boundary. Maintaining the domaine’s rigorous traditionalist approach, the fruit undergoes whole-cluster fermentation in concrete tanks, followed by an élevage in neutral, multi-decade-old foudres to ensure the wine breathes without influence from wood-derived tannins. The 2023 vintage, characterized by a challenging growing season of variable rainfall and late-summer heat, has yielded a wine of impressive structural clarity and tension. On the palate, this Syrah presents a firm, mineral-driven chassis, balancing a medium-bodied weight with bright acidity and the precise, fine-grained tannins that define the Clape family’s house style.