2023 Jean-Louis Chave Selection Crozes-Hermitage Blanc Sybele Organic, Northern Rhone

Stone fruits, tart peach, blanched almonds, and minerality all emerge from the 2023 Crozes-Hermitage Sybèle Blanc. Medium-bodied and juicy on the palate, with beautiful balance, integrated acidity, and a clean, fresh finish, it's drinking nicely today yet should easily have 2-4 years of longevity. It's impeccably made, and I'd happily drink a bottle. Drink 2025-2029.

91 points jebdunnuck.com

Jean Louis Chave’s Crozes Hermitage Blanc Sybele from the Northern Rhone is a graceful and layered white wine that perfectly captures the quiet power and finesse of this classic region. Jean Louis Chave is a name that defines the Rhone, with winemaking roots in Hermitage stretching back to the late 1400s. His Selection label allows him to explore nearby appellations with the same care and sensitivity that made his estate wines world famous. The Sybele is his ode to the whites of Crozes Hermitage, crafted with restraint and precision to highlight the purity and natural energy of Marsanne and Roussanne grown on granite and limestone slopes.

Vineyards sit on the eastern side of the Rhone River, where rocky terraces and clay limestone soils give texture and mineral lift. The continental climate, with its hot days, cool nights and mistral winds, ensures long ripening and vibrant acidity. The grapes are hand picked at perfect ripeness and gently pressed as whole bunches to retain aromatics. Fermentation takes place with indigenous yeasts in stainless steel and old French oak barrels, with extended lees ageing for subtle creaminess and depth. Chave avoids heavy oak influence or malolactic softness, preferring to let the fruit and mineral character take centre stage.

In the glass it glows pale gold with shimmering green hues. The aroma is beautifully nuanced, offering white peach, ripe pear and quince with undertones of honeysuckle, acacia, almond and wet stone. Hints of beeswax, fennel and citrus oil emerge as it opens, giving a sense of both richness and precision. The palate is supple and textural, balancing layers of orchard fruit and lemon curd with saline minerality and taut acidity. A gentle leesy creaminess adds mouthfeel, but the wine remains lively and pure to the finish, which is long, savoury and elegantly chalky.

It is superb with roasted poultry, shellfish, or creamy pasta with herbs, and also works beautifully with dishes that highlight truffle, mushrooms or aged cheeses such as Gruyère or Comté. The wine’s depth and natural balance mean it will evolve gracefully over the next ten to twelve years, gaining honeyed, nutty and lanolin complexity while retaining its line and freshness.