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Noel Verset

For years considered by many to be the benchmark producer for Cornas, Noel Verset is now in the process of winding down. At an incredible age - approaching 90 years old no less - and with no heir apparent, Verset has sold many of his vines in 2000, to Thierry Allemand and Auguste Clape to name just two recipients. It does appear, however, that although the rumours suggested at the time that Verset was giving up for good, there is still a trickle of wine emerging from the estate in the 2001, 2002 and 2003 vintages.

Noel Verset has been a bastion of Cornas with decades of experience, having made his first vintage in 1942, from vines purchased over ten years earlier. The fruit was sourced from three plots and blended together into a single cuvée, unlike some younger producers who tend towards bottling separate cuvées. Nevertheless, by blending in this way, Noel Verset managed to produce a single wine of excellent quality, considered by many to be the leading wine of the appellation.

His three plots of vines were in the following zones:

• Reynard: vineyards on east and south-east facing slopes on the hills to the west of Cornas. The soils contain many granite, stony soils and are well-drained.
• Chaillots: vineyards with limestone soil, located to the north-west of Cornas.
• Les Sabarottes: vineyards west of Cornas, south of the Reynard slopes.

Practices in the vineyard and cellar have always been very much traditional. Until recently Noel Verset did much of the vineyard labour himself, hard work on the steep slopes of the northern Rhone. Verset even grafted his own vines, rather than rely on the local nursery. Low yields, destemming, up to fifteen days soak and a gentle press, before bottling without filtering helps to explain why quality here has always been so good. But I can't help feeling it's largely down to super old vines, some a century old (one wonders whether these old friends have names), and great terroir, together with Noel Verset's skill in the winery - knowing what not to do as much as what to do. These are the reasons these wines have such a fine reputation.

In the following tasting notes I include wines from Yvonne (Noel's wife) and Louis (Noel's brother) Verset. (16/3/04)

Contact details:
Address: Impasse de la Couleyre, 07130 Cornas
Telephone: +33 (0) 4 75 23 10 11
Fax: +33 (0) 4 75 23 05 58

Noel Verset - Tasting Notes

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Noel Verset Cornas 1997: This is a glossy wine, not quite as dense as some of the other wines, with a pink rim. A lot of funk on the nose, with tar and a vegetal edge. Similar flavours on the palate, but the tannin rides roughshod all over it. Savage stuff. Good texture, but is there enough fruit. Needs five to eight years. 16.5+/20 (March 2004)

Noel Verset Cornas 1996: Quite an opaque wine, but not as richly coloured as some. Packed with fruit on the nose. The nose is packed with blackcurrant jam. On the palate, there are tannins and firm acidity. A touch of finesse and elegance though. This should improve nicely over the next three or four years. 16.5+/20 (March 2004)

Noel Verset Cornas 1995: This is dense, dark, almost opaque wine, although it pales a little at the rim. The nose here is unusual - it is intensely fruity, full of blackcurrant jam. The palate is full-textured, and has piles and piles of tannic structure. Real power here. This is quite intense. Needs five to seven years at least. 17+/20 (March 2004)

Noel Verset Cornas 1994: Again a very dark wine, with a youthful core but with maturity apparent at the edge. An intense nose, which has a medley of perfume and rose petals mixed with sweet, tarry, medicinal fruit. Full of texture on the palate, but absolutely stuffed with tannin also. Despite this the elegant, perfumed fruit is still apparent. Correct acidity. Packed with potential, but needs another three to five years in the cellar. 17+/20 (March 2004)

Noel Verset Cornas 1991: In contrast this has a very dark colour - one of the darkest in fact - although it is not opaque or obviously youthful. The nose has some power, with sweet fruit alongside notes of iron filings. This impression follows through on the palate, where there is plenty of integrated structure. Good tannins, balanced out by upfront, well-delineated fruit and good, firm acidity. A mouthfilling, full texture, yet a fragrant, perfumed edge to the fruit. This is wonderful stuff. Ready now, but it may well continue to improve for a couple of years, and should hold its own much longer than that. 18/20 (March 2004)

Noel Verset Cornas 1991: Acidic black fruits on the nose, with smouldering charcoal in the background, and also some rubber. Intense. Firm, acidic, with plenty of fruit on the palate, and lovely texture. A lovely mouthfeel. Although a big and impressive wine, this is beautifully balanced and very approachable. Good tannins on the finish. From a Northern Rhône 1991 blind tasting. 18/20 (November 2002)

Chapoutier 'Gauntley's of Nottingham Reserve' Cornas 1991: Although this wine bears the easily recognisable Chapoutier label, and has clearly been bottled for UK merchant John Gauntley, I have it on authority that the wine was sourced solely from the vineyards of Louis Verset, brother to Noel. Similar acidic fruit on the nose, but with blackcurrant and small berry fruits. Somewhat fuller on entry, and quite well balanced. Smoky, mature, and full of ripe tannins and rich fruit. A creamy mouthfeel, but a shorter finish. From a Northern Rhône 1991 blind tasting. 17/20 (November 2002)

Yvonne Verset Cornas 1991: The fruit for this wine was sourced from the vineyards of Louis Verset, brother of Noel Verset. Louis didn't wish to bottle the wine under his own name, for reasons which I won't allude to here. Contacting his brother for help, Noel agreed to bottle the wine under the name of his wife Yvonne. There was a need to keep down the costs of this new 'venture', which saw only one vintage, and so some labels were purchased from Augustus Clape. This all leads to a confusing bottle, bearing the name of the otherwise unknown Yvonne Verset, printed on Clape labels. Nevertheless, the wine inside is, in my experience, very good. Some vegetal, pongy, charcoal notes on the nose, with some fine, acidic fruit. Soft yet grippy tannins on the palate, with sharp, tingling acidity coming through. Medium bodied, with berry fruit, and charcoal nuances. With time it opens and softens in the glass, and has some elegance. From a Northern Rhône 1991 blind tasting. 17.5/20 (November 2002)

Yvonne Verset Cornas 1991: A dark purple wine, with just a shade of mahogany. The nose is medicinal, with charcoal, rose petals and a thin vein of fruit. Very elegant on entry, with acidic raspberry fruit and more of those charcoal and medicinal notes. The tannins are quite sharp, dry, somewhat hard. A clean finish with some power. This is classic Cornas. Yvonne is the wife of Noel Verset, and the fruit was sourced from vineyards belonging to Noel's brother. From a 1991 Vintage ten year on blind tasting. 17.5/20 (December 2001)

Noel Verset Cornas 1988: This is the oldest looking wine tasted in this sitting, with a tawny, browning quality. It still has fruit on the nose, though, but an initial whiff of volatile acidity too. The palate is fairly delicate - at least in comparison to the wines that follow. A decent level of tannin, although it is quite well integrated. Some herbaceous notes and a clean, sweet although short finish. Not showing as well as my last tasting a year or two ago. Ready now. 17/20 (March 2004)

Noel Verset Cornas 1988: A vibrant red hue. Pure fruit with a hint of toffee oak on the nose here, with floral, aromatic, rose petal notes. Medium bodied on the palate, and firm, although with a touch of sweetness and fat. Nicely integrated tannins and good acidity. 18.5/20 (July 2002)