I was chatting to a winemaker recently over dinner, and I confided in him an insecurity of mine.
I explained that while I didn’t normally find it difficult to describe the style of any given Rhône vintage, I found it peculiarly challenging to succinctly summarise that of 2022.
‘Don’t worry,’ he said. ‘I feel the same way.’ It helped put my mind at rest. But I’m still determined to get to grips with this slippery customer.
In any given year, wines tend to perform rather like flocks of birds or shoals of fish: there might be smaller sub-groups or individual outliers, but the majority move in the same direction to create a general vintage style.
The 2022, however, is unusually chaotic.
See Matt Walls’ full Rhône 2022 report
The season
Harvesting Grenache in lieu-dit La Verde, in Vacqueyras
(Image credit: Matt Walls)
Lewis Bungener of Clos de Caveau says ‘2022 was a very particular vintage – one that initially caused real concern.’
Between 15 October 2021 and 1 September 2022, just 300mm of rain fell in the southern Rhône, compared to an average of 600mm.
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Combined with the intense heat (it was the hottest May on record) many vines simply shut down and stopped growing in order to conserve water.
‘The rain that eventually came in late summer changed everything,’ says Bungener.
‘The effect was extraordinary: what had threatened to become heavy wines with dry, harsh tannins found an incredible balance, gaining freshness and definition. That said, producers who misjudged maturity timings did still suffer.’
Cécile Dusserre of Domaine de Montvac agrees, saying: ‘We had two nights of rain on 7 and 8 September, and we finished harvesting on 14 September.’
Rain at harvest can cause grapes to rot, but conditions had been so hot and dry, the water was welcome.
‘It allowed for a more relaxed juice and lowered the concentration of the berries,’ says Dusserre.
Though controlled irrigation is permitted in Vacqueyras, it was gratifying to see that some of the best wines this year were produced by estates that don’t water their vines, such as Domaine de Montvac, Domaine Montirius and Domaine la Monardière.
It proves that even in very dry years, Vacqueyras can still produce excellent wines, which bodes well for an uncertain future.
Marie-Thérèse Combe, of Domaine la Fourmone, one of Matt’s 2022 picks
(Image credit: Getty Images / Hemis)
The tasting
These extreme conditions created a series of obstacles and pitfalls that vignerons were forced to navigate. Not everyone succeeded.
The year started with a huge abundance of grapes. Those who failed to drop fruit often struggled to eventually ripen all their berries, ending up with green, unripe flavours.
The lack of rain during the growing season produced very small berries, with little juice but thick skins. For some, excessive extraction led to tough tannins.
Intense heat can cause many problems, and some wines suffered from high alcohol – though not as many as I expected. Instances of low acidity or pruney fruit were thankfully rare.
And finally, some wines failed to make the grade simply due to excessive oak. Layering oak tannins on top of robust fruit tannins produced some inelegant, clunky wines.
But many producers managed to sidestep some or all these potential snares to create wines of balance and drinkability.
The verdict
Vacqueyras vineyards and the Dentelles de Montmirail mountains
(Image credit: Denis Plat / InterRhone)
Having had a few years in bottle to come together, many are now looking better than they did from barrel – both whites and reds.
I felt happy to recommend around half the wines I tasted, and they are featured below.
And many of those who did succeed really excelled.
As Bungener says: ‘The vintage across the region produced a mixed picture but for those who managed the conditions well, 2022 produced wines of real distinction: a rare combination of richness and fullness alongside finesse and freshness.’
This tasting helped me to understand this confounding year. The key is this: the best wines excel despite the vintage, not because of it.
The best Vacqueyras 2022 wines in bottle
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