J. Vidal-Fleury Saint-Joseph 2018

The oldest winery continuously operating in the northern Rhône, Vidal Fleury was founded in 1781 as a wine grower and proprietor of vineyards in the Côte Rôtie. Thomas Jefferson’s visit in 1787 was its first contact with the United States; he called the wines “justly celebrated”. Founder Joseph Vidal strove to produce wines that expressed the typicity of the various soils and to achieve the highest degree of quality possible. True to the founder's goals. the winery continues to produce wines that are the finest expression of their appellation. Today Vidal Fleury offers a comprehensive range of red, white and rosé wines from the Rhône Valley. Recognizing the enormous potential of Vidal Fleury and the value of its brand, renowned Rhône winemaker (and Vidal's neighbor) Marcel Guigal bought the company in 1984. In 2006 Vidal-Fleury began investing to modernize its winery facilities, installing state-of-the-art technology; in 2008, it built a new cellar specifically dedicated to maturing the wines. In addition, Vidal-Fleury’s vineyards are overseen with 100% self-sustaining management practices. Vidal-Fleury carries on under the watchful management of Head Winemaker Guy Sarton du Jonchay.  

Sourced from steep slopes along the Rhône River made up of granite soils with schist and gneiss. Vineyard elevations between 200-400 meters with an ideal southern exposure. Vinification: Grapes are machine and hand harvested and transported to the winery in small crates. Fermentation occurs with indigenous yeasts in temperature controlled tanks with the maceration period lasting approximately 3 weeks. We tasted and loved this St. Jo with its hint of nutmeg and clove in the nose mingling with red and black fruits. On the palate, this is a little earthy but perfectly ripe, and makes you crave red meat. Aged 12 months in 10% new oak, the rest in one or two year barrels. The finished wine is very lightly filtered (cross flow) and not fined. The wines rest in bottle for a minimum of 4 months prior to release.