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Viinin Kuvailu
The Story
In the heart of the Rhône Valley, this small chapel has become one of the world’s great historic buildings
La Chapelle, the jewel of Maison Jaboulet, has a rich and emotive history.
During the 13th century, a knight called Gaspard de Sterimberg settled in the hills of Tain l’Hermitage with the permission of Blanche de Castille. On his return from the crusades, he sought calm and serenity and isolated himself as a hermit, hence the name of the Hermitage appellation. There he built a Chapel, overlooking the Rhône Valley.
La Chapelle endured the passage of time and finally became the property of Maison Paul Jaboulet Aîné in 1919.
Hermitage “La Chapelle” is a blend of terroirs, including the prestigious hillsides of Méal and Bessards. Each one provides its own aromatic characteristics, as well as an elegant tannin structure, giving the wine great ageing potential.
Since the legendary 1961 vintage, which was classed as one of the Twelve mythical wines of the 20th century, Hermitage “la Chapelle” has become one of the world’s most sought-after wines.
Its fame has led Maison Paul Jaboulet Aîné to revive a historical tradition by producing a few bottles of 2006 “la Chapelle” white wine.
The diversity of “terroirs” on these lands gives our wine an identity of its own, thanks to the blending of grapes from different plots.
Soil:
The Syrah vines are planted in rich and varied soils with very diverse terroirs (les Bessards, les Greffieux, le Méal and les Rocoules).
It is the richness of these different terroirs that provides our Hermitage La Chapelle with its complexity.
Grape Variety:
Very old Syrah vines; goblet pruning on stakes.
Age of the vines:
40 to 60 years.
Vinification:
Grapes are brought down from the slopes of l’Hermitage on small sledges, after which they are sorted by hand and vinified traditionally in our wineries
Final blending is carried out during the ageing process and is done through judicious selection from the different terroirs of l’Hermitage.
Ageing:
La Chapelle is aged in wood in our ancient “VINEUM” cellar for 15 to 18 months. During this process the wines are also racked.
Yield:
Low yields of 10 to 18 hl/ha.
Wine Information
The 2003 harvest was marked by a heat wave. The weather was very hot and dry during the whole of the summer, and until November. The advance that had taken place in the vine cycle by June was not slowed down by the drought, and we planned to harvest around the 8th of September, one week earlier than last year.
We started harvesting on Tuesday, 26th August. According to Louis Jaboulet, only the 1947 harvest had begun this early.
The wine is black as ink and both red and white have very little acidity. The alcohol levels are quite high, they are all above 14°. We had to modify the pH during vinification because of a lack of acidity. It was very difficult to get well-balanced wines that do not deteriorate when ageing.
We noticed that the grapes suffered from a loss of water due to evaporation and the grape-berries were withered. The red and white grapes are in perfect condition.
The concentration of phenolics is unique, and the yields are between 15 and 20 hl/ha. The yield in juice is between 155 and 165kg/100 litres of wine.
The white wines can be distinguished by their very low acidity and their high alcohol level. These wines are rich and fleshy in mouth.
