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Based near Lausanne in Switzerland, Caroline Frey spends most of her time traveling between her family’s wineries in Bordeaux, Burgundy, Valais and the Rhône Valley. While she employs local staff in each, Frey ultimately calls the final shots on viticulture, winemaking and basically everything else. Just recently, though, her sister Delphine Frey joined the family operations, focusing on all marketing-related aspects. The 2022 reds are packed with density and ripeness, neatly maintaining a refreshing profile. Frey and I discussed the reasons why the wines are able to maintain such remarkable freshness despite the occasionally scorching high temperatures. She points out: “In some cases, it's better for the vines when temperatures rise above 40°C (104°F) than having longer periods of 35°C (95°F), because then the vines don’t shut down, and there’s lots of evapotranspiration. A temporary shutdown can be better as opposed to constantly high evaporation rates. In my opinion, those severe heat spikes of 2022, when some of the vines completely shut down, are part of the reason why the wines turned out so balanced. That being said, we had two rain showers in June and August, which were really important for the vines to continue with sugar accumulation and phenolic ripeness. Given September wasn't overly dry either, the severe dryness in 2022 mainly occurred during spring and the month of July.” Although the 2022 Hermitage La Chapelle is shaping up to be an outstanding rendition, I’m fairly sure the 2020 will have the edge in the long run. The 2021, on the other hand, is a more moderately concentrated La Chapelle whose substance and class are nowhere near that of 2020 or 2022. Looking more closely at the winemaking, Frey continues to destem all the grapes, regardless of the vintage. “In 2011 and 2012, we experimented with partial whole-cluster fermentation in Cornas, but I wasn’t convinced of the result. Of course, there are many great wines using stems during fermentation, but remember that the historical style of Jaboulet was never to use any stems. Furthermore, we’re already dealing with lower acidity levels in these exceptionally warm vintages. Using stems during fermentation automatically lowers acidity levels,” Frey remarked. The Hermitage La Chapelle now ages in a combination of 600-liter demi-muids, barriques and 16-hectoliter concrete eggs. When new oak is used, it doesn’t exceed 20%. An interesting winemaking choice by Frey is to block the malolactic conversion for all her whites, with the aim of maximizing freshness and energy. The whites I tasted here are indeed all distinctively fresh and vibrant, with the 2022 Hermitage La Chapelle Blanc Le Chevalier de Sterimberg a real standout. As of the 2021 vintage, both the Hermitage La Chapelle and Hermitage Blanc Le Chevalier de Sterimberg will be labeled as Domaine de La Chapelle rather than Paul Jaboulet Aîné. Frey explained the decision: “La Chapelle has such a strong identity on every level that it became clear to us, after years of work, that the next step for La Chapelle was to live on its own, under its own entity, and with the creation of its own winery at the bottom of the hill. While Paul Jaboulet Aîné will always be part of La Chapelle’s history, this change marks a new beginning in the La Chapelle story, which has been around since the 13th century.” Going forward, all wines from Domaine de la Chapelle will be distributed directly by Frey’s team for the French and US markets, while all other markets will be served via La Place de Bordeaux. At the same time, all Paul Jaboulet Aîné labeled wines will continue to be marketed by Frey’s team.
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