Hermitage Chante-Alouette, M. Chapoutier 2021

Hermitage is the northern Rhône's most famous and sought-after appellation, producing only limited amounts of deeply expressive, long-lived wine. This one's from Michel Chapoutier, a long-time advocate of biodynamic farming, using fruit from three top sites across the Hermitage hill. It's partly aged in oak for added depth, with ripe peach, roasted nuts, white flowers and a faint saline twist running through. Marsanne is the variety behind it all - rich, structured and full of character, but never overblown. It's already showing plenty of complexity, with the promise of more to come over time.

Perfect with roast chicken, monkfish or creamy mushroom dishes - anything rich enough to match the depth and layered texture. Drinking well now and will hold up nicely into the mid-2030s.

One of the main players of the Rhône and, these days, further afield, M. Chapoutier’s history goes back to 1808. Still based in the northern Rhône’s nerve centre of Tain-l’Hermitage, the producer's vineyards span the length of the region and far beyond, even to Australia. The arrival of Michel Chapoutier in 1990 marked a turning point. His championing of biodynamic viticulture, coupled with exceptional vineyard sites, re-established the estate among the top Rhône producers. Their commitment to sustainable practices is absolute—no herbicides or pesticides, and a belief in biodiversity within the vineyards. Today, they own Europe's largest biodynamic vineyard and create some of the Rhône's most iconic wines.