Cellar Favorite:
2000 Noël Verset Cornas 

BY NEAL
MARTIN | JUNE 23, 2025

Writer
and Rhône expert John Livingston-Learmonth eloquently described Noël Verset as “a
quiet pillar of Cornas.” Not so long ago, bottles of Verset Cornas were
inexpensive and regularly appeared at dinners. It is still mindboggling that
Verset turned grapes into wine for three-quarters of a century after debuting
with the 1931 at the tender age of 12! He wound down his workload from around
2004 and passed away in 2015 at the ripe old age of 95. Some of his parcels
were sold to Thierry Allemand, and his treasured holding in Chaillots went to his
nephew, Franck Balthazar. Prices of bottles rapidly increased as they are wont
to do posthumously, cognoscenti understanding that each bottle opened is one
less in existence. (As an aside, it is well worth reading <a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/noel-verset-cornas-1985-2006-jan-2015">Josh Raynolds’ account</a> of a Verset vertical back to
1985.)<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1750685825363-cornas+verset_Vinous.JPG">A
recent bottle was a pertinent reminder of how Verset’s wines can bring such
joy. At 25 years old, the 2000 Cornas is intense on the nose with dark
berry fruit, pressed iris flower, tantalising glimpses of star anise and a
discrete menthol scent that becomes more pronounced after a second pour. The
delineation is wonderful. The palate is medium-bodied with a core of
sorbet-fresh red fruit, hints of blood orange and raspberry, with a light
undercurrent of garrigue towards the feisty finish. Whilst it does not
rank amongst Verset’s greatest achievements—such as the 1991 or 1998—the 2000
is a refined Cornas at its peak. Based on this showing, it will clearly give
another 15 years of drinking pleasure. 93/Drink 2025-2040. © 2025, Vinous. No portion of this article may be copied, shared or redistributed without prior consent from Vinous. Doing so is not only a violation of our copyright but also threatens the survival of independent wine criticism.

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