As Richard starts his assessment of the 2017 vintage in the Rhône Valley, we look at a winning combination of vintage and appellation.
It's salutary to remember that the Viognier vine almost became extinct. There were only 14 ha (35 acres) left in its homeland Condrieu in the northern Rhône (see map) in the 1960s and it was hardly grown elsewhere, being scorned for its susceptibility to coulure and resulting low yields.
If there are now thousands of hectares of the variety around the world, it is a tribute to the very special qualities of Condrieu and its neighbour...