Clusel-Roch Le Clos 2021 - 0,75l

Clusel-Roch Côte-Rôtie 2021 is an organic Syrah from the Rhône with blackberry, violet and black pepper over stony northern energy and a dry finish tonight. It has the cool bite of the 2021 vintage, with blackberry skin, violet and pepper leading the way. Used French oak keeps the frame subtle. The stony finish is the hook for lamb, charcuterie or roast poultry.

About the Wine
Clusel-Roch Côte-Rôtie 2021 is dry Syrah from stony vineyards in the northern Rhône, farmed with organic and biodynamic certification. Organic and biodynamic certification is written into this bottle, giving the 2021 a clear farming identity for Côte-Rôtie. The 12.5% alcohol gives the wine a compact feel that suits the cool peppered shape of the year. The fruit register is darker than the frame suggests, with blackberry and black cherry at the centre. The 2021 fruit feels compact and aromatic, with violet, pepper and small dark berries packed tightly together. Violet sits close to the berries, and a black-pepper note arrives early. The stony ground is easy to sense in the wine's dry grip and clean mineral edge. Aging takes place in used French oak barrels, a detail that matters in this Clusel-Roch bottling. The barrels add fine grain around the tannins and keep the fruit in a clear line. The cellar profile feels quiet, with oak showing as a touch of polish around black cherry. The 2021 Côte-Rôtie carries a faint volcanic-rock impression after the pepper. The dry finish carries the same stony accent that appears in the vineyard description. The last impression is blackberry skin, pepper dust and cold stone.

Tasting Notes
Deep ruby in the glass, the wine has a darker core than its moderate 12.5% alcohol suggests and a youthful rim at the edge of the bowl. The nose opens on blackberry and black cherry, then turns toward violet, cracked pepper and a faint smell of wet stone after a few minutes in the glass. On the palate, the 2021 Clusel-Roch Côte-Rôtie feels fresh and finely structured, with dark fruit set inside a slim northern Rhône frame that points straight to Syrah. The tannins are silky and gently drying, and the used French oak shows as a light savoury edge around black cherry skin before a clean volcanic-rock finish that lingers with pepper dust and violet after a few sips. Drink 2024-2028.

Food Pairing
The peppery line in Clusel-Roch Côte-Rôtie 2021 makes it strong with grilled lamb chops, especially with rosemary, garlic and a little char. Roast chicken with mushrooms is a good match, with the wine's 12.5% alcohol keeping the plate lively and the black cherry fruit staying clear. For a regional nod, serve saucisson de Lyon with cornichons and good bread so the black pepper note meets the savoury fat in the charcuterie. Aged Comté or a firm Tomme brings out the wine's violet note, pepper and mineral grip. If you want poultry, choose duck breast with crisp skin and a little thyme so the black cherry side of the wine has something savoury beside it.

Producer
Clusel-Roch is a family domaine in the northern Rhône, based around the steep Côte-Rôtie slopes near Ampuis, and its name has become tied to tactile Syrah that puts pepper and stone ahead of polish. The concrete trait I look for here is the domaine's handling of oak: used French barrels frame the 2021 wine gently, then the violet and black-fruit scent stays in front of the glass. The estate farms with organic and biodynamic certification, and that hands-on work feels visible in this bottle through the stony impression that appears after blackberry and black cherry, then lingers as dry grip. In Clusel-Roch Côte-Rôtie 2021, that vineyard impression shows as cold stone, black pepper and a faint volcanic-rock note that keeps returning after each sip and gives the wine its quiet signature. The modest 12.5% alcohol is another useful clue to the producer's touch, as the wine carries Syrah depth through scent and tannin with a narrow feel that suits the 2021 vintage. I like Clusel-Roch for this kind of detail: the bottle speaks in blackberry skin, violet and pepper dust before the appellation name has to carry the conversation; that is a small clue in a famous place, and it makes the producer's hand easy to recognise.

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