Wine Advisor
Marc Sorrel, Hermitage Le Greal 2019
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Joe Czerwinski
From yields of just 18 hectoliters per hectare, Sorrel's 2019 Hermitage Le Greal is a great way for Guillaume Sorrel to announce his ascension to the helm of the family business. Scents of crushed stone and delicate herbal underpinnings accent waves of ripe, velvety cherry fruit, while the full-bodied palate is rich and concentrated but never seems heavy, instead finishing long, with an impressive degree of elegance. 2,500 bottles produced.
Reviewed by: Josh Raynolds
Deep, glistening magenta. Hugely expressive cherry, blackberry, espresso and floral aromas, along with suggestions of smoked meat, licorice and star anise. Deeply concentrated as well as energetic on the palate, offering intense black and blue fruit preserve, fruitcake, exotic spice and floral pastille flavors that stretch out and take on a smoky mineral aspect as the wine opens up. Finishes extremely long and juicy, showing sharp delineation, steadily building tannins and strong mineral thrust on the floral-accented finish.
About the Producer
Marc Sorrel is a leading estate in the Hermitage appellation of the northern Rhône, producing traditionally styled, long-lived red wines from Syrah as well as white wines from Marsanne and Roussanne. The estate was founded in 1928 by Félix Sorrel and from 1984 to 2018, was run by his grandson Marc. Today, Marc's son Guillaume is at the helm of the domaine. The estate is best known for its Hermitage wines, sourced from several plots on the famous hillside. Typically, the vines are planted on granite-based soils, and enjoy the region's sunny, south-oriented mesoclimate. Some of the vines are more than 60 years old, and produce tiny yields of intensely concentrated berries. There are four Hermitage wines in Marc Sorrel's current portfolio – two red and two white and are varietal expressions of Syrah and Marsanne respectively. The top red wine, Le Gréal, is produced in tiny amounts from the best old vine parcels of Syrah within the estate with a small portion of Marsanne. The white wine, Les Rocoules, is predominantly Marsanne with a little Roussanne. Marc Sorrel also makes a red and a white Crozes-Hermitage wine. In the winery, the grapes are often whole-bunch fermented. The white varieties are fermented in large used oak barrels to impart a soft oak influence. All wines are aged in old oak barrels in the cellar for a period prior to bottling.
