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Wine Description
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
2007/ From the North to the South, our Côtes du Rhône vineyards enjoyed excellent weather conditions that allowed our grapes to mature well.
After an unseasonably warm spring, meaning that the buds opened early, the weather became less clement over summer 2007. A series of rainy spells allowed us to rebuild water reserves for the vines. With a view to attaining sustainable farming status, we met our aim of avoiding the use of herbicides. Careful work was carried out to ventilate the grapes by thinning out bunches and leaves so as to ensure that the vines remained in excellent health.
The first white grapes were picked on 4th September. The sugar/acidity balance was easily attained. The rigorous selection of grapes on the vine allowed us to put only grapes of exceptional quality into the presses. This vintage will be notable for the exceptional freshness of the Saint Péray, the aromatic richness and extraordinary fleshiness of the Condrieu and the marvellous aromatic intensity of the Hermitage. Both the Crozes and the Saint Joseph look to have great potential as wines that will keep very well.
We had to display great patience in order to produce our 2007 reds, but the harvest allowed us to wait until we had very sound grapes that had reached a perfect maturity. The harvest for the reds began with the Cornas on 21st September. The Domaine de Thalabert followed on 28th September. We began on the Hermitage on 3rd October and did not complete that work until the 9th, the last day of the harvest, when the Domaine de Roure and Domaine de Saint Pierre grapes were to be picked simultaneously.
The 2007 vintage will be notable for the staggering of the harvest over 5 weeks. This risk paid off with the finesse of the wines: beautifully grainy textures enrobed in silky tannins that melt in the mouth, all with a very intense dark colour.