Well here’s a thing, a bottle sent to me as a sample which I actually drained to its bottom. I had a bit of help from my white-wine-only mother-in-law, I must admit, but this is my style of Condrieu. There are many impressive examples around, but because the Viognier grape reveals its unique mayblossom and honeysuckle perfume only when the grapes are very ripe, many of them can seem almost excessively rich and alcoholic. For me the ideal Condrieu (and indeed varietal Viognier from elsewhere) has these scents in abundance but also has a sufficient spine of acidity to encourage one to drink a second glass, or indeed drain the bottle.
The Pichon family have been farming three or four hectares in Chavanay for some time now but young Christophe is refining the winemaking every year. I am told that his 2001 was not as impressive as this 2002. It was Rhône expert John Livingstone-Learmonth (who is rumoured to be writing another edition of The Wines of the Rhône – hooray!) who identified this wine as being something worth importing to the useful UK importer Vine Trail, which really does trail around France looking for an ever-changing roster of interesting wines with real personality bought direct from the growers themselves. You would think this was what all wine merchants do but you would, alas, be wrong. Far too many of them buy through middlepeople, and many others simply buy from the same suppliers each year regardless of quality.
Anyway, here is a really appetising Condrieu which sacrifices nothing in terms of flavour – that blossom plus a suggestion of dried apricots – but has an additional streak of minerality. It is already delicious – obviously – but should still be a very useful smart white to serve with a fairly neutral first course next year and possibly the year after. I always think that Condrieu is a seriously useful wine for formal entertaining of people who are exposed too regularly to white burgundy. Yes, they do exist – especially in a certain sector of British society. Lawyers, financial fatcats and all that.
Rodrigo of Brazil, a regular contributor to your turn on purple pages with a particularly sensitivity for and interest in food and wine matching, suggests serving scallops with such a wine. His initial suggestion was a dish he tried recently which involved "a soft, mild goat's cheese dressing instead of the traditional Japanese shoyo and wasabi". Simpler would be scallops, perhaps grilled with some wild leeks. And for those who don't like scallops he proposes a delicate white fish like St Pierre baked in foil. I wouldn't overdo the lemon juice for fear of making the wine taste flabby.
Vine Trail (www.vinetrail.co.uk) list this wine at £18.95 a bottle. Those outside the UK can find out more about how to buy this wine from the Pichons themselves on the following numbers gleaned from Robert Parker’s admirably thorough Wines of the Rhône Valley tel: +33 4 74 87 23 61 fax: +33 4 74 87 07 27.