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Franck Balthazar, Cornas Chaillot, 2016

Red Wine from Northern Rhone, France
by Franck Balthazar
$139.99
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Three generations of the Balthazar family have made wine in Cornas. Casimir founded the domaine in 1931, Rene took charge in 1950, and Franck took over in 2002, leaving his textile factory job to run the then 2-hectare estate. He has since expanded to over 4 hectares. The Chaillot vineyard contains vines planted in 1914—century-old Petite Syrah acquired from his uncle Noel Verset. Certified organic since 2013. Franck uses a horse to plow steep vineyard holdings. Whole cluster fermentation, native yeasts, concrete vats, manual cap punching, aging in old neutral demi-muid barrels.

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Antonio Galloni

95 points

"Inky ruby. Vibrant, highly perfumed blue fruit, potpourri and incense aromas display outstanding clarity and pick up exotic spice and smoky mineral notes with aeration. Pure, focused and lively in the mouth, offering appealingly sweet blueberry, cherry preserve and violet pastille flavors that show superb depth and no rough edges. Deepens slowly on the impressively long, energetic finish, which features resonating florality and sneaky, slow-mounting tannins." —Josh Raynolds

Robert Parker

93 points

"More meaty and savory than the younger vintages I tasted, Balthazar's 2016 Cornas Chaillot still shows herbal notes and red currants. Medium to full-bodied, it's firm, chewy and long. Perhaps more classic in style than the 2017 or 2018, it was harvested on September 20, more than a week later than those warmer years." —Joe Czerwinski

Wine Spectator

95 points

"Lively, with brambly grip carrying the core of gently steeped plum and raspberry fruit along, while notes of savory, fresh bay leaf and violet fill in throughout. Shows nice cut through the finish."

More about Franck Balthazar

As is so often the case when we want ready-to-drink and approachable wines that don’t break the bank, we look to a master who is famous for wines that are far more grand. In this case, the master is Franck Balthazar.

Balthazar seems to be on the cusp of joining the pantheon of great Northern Rhône traditionalists. He has thoroughbred holdings of great old vines planted on amazing sites which he works naturally. In the winery he employs old-school techniques and vinifies with little intervention (aka "natural"). The result of all his hard work are wines that express their terroir in the pure and profound way that only the “best ever” manage. It’s no surprise that the great Northern Rhône writer, Jonathan Livingstone-Learmonth, honored him with his "STGT" (soil to glass transfer) label, a label he uses for the few producers who manage to express their terroir purely and directly in their wines.

Wine Details

  • Vintage

    2016

  • Size

    750ml

  • Farming Practice

    Traditional

  • Style

    Elegant , Rich

  • Sweetness

    Dry

  • Body

    Full Bodied

Flatiron's Take

From the Importer

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Tasting Notes & Food Pairings

Perfect Pairings

Beef braised in wine, roasted lamb, mushroom tart, aged Rhône Valley cheeses

Tasting Profile

Dark cherry and plum with mineral notes and subtle spice. Full-bodied with firm tannins and good acidity, displaying concentrated fruit flavors and a long, structured finish.

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