The wines of Domaine Verset A & E have been a favorite of ours for nearly a decade and remain one of the most compelling values in Cornas. We have a late release of the 2021 today, which is a beautiful vintage for this address. Emmanuelle Verset took over from her father Alain in 2016, becoming the sixth generation of the family to make wine here and carrying forward one of the appellation’s great names. Alain was the nephew of the legendary Noël Verset, and today the domaine still farms parcels inherited through both Noël and Alain’s father Louis, including old vines in Champelrose, La Geynale and Les Mazards, some more than a century old. Emmanuelle has brought greater precision and stricter farming to the domaine while keeping the winemaking resolutely traditional, with whole-cluster fermentation and no new oak, producing Cornas that feels increasingly rare in an appellation where prices have climbed dramatically. 2021 was a difficult, cool vintage, with spring frost cutting yields and a long growing season producing a more classical style of Northern Rhône Syrah less about sheer weight and more about perfume, freshness and transparency. This is a particularly elegant Verset, with dark and red fruit, violet, black pepper, olive and savory herbs wrapped around bright acidity and the granitic mineral character of Cornas. It is already remarkably expressive but has the structure to develop beautifully, and at our special pricing it remains one of the easiest Cornas buys we can recommend.
Decanter (Matt Walls) 94 points! "Hot tarmac and bonfire ash aromas - decidedly smoky, with herbal undertones. Medium- to full-bodied, there's no lack of ripeness, it's concentrated too, if not massive in size, so quite a compact style of Cornas. The tannins are vibrant, intense, textural and classic for the appellation - so you'll need to wait for them to settle. Fresh, intense, well balanced and will last. (Drink between 2027-2035)"
2021 Domaine Verset A & E Cornas
2021 Domaine Verset A & E Cornas
The wines of Domaine Verset A & E have been a favorite of ours for nearly a decade and remain one of the most compelling values in Cornas. We have a late release of the 2021 today, which is a beautiful vintage for this address. Emmanuelle Verset took over from her father Alain in 2016, becoming the sixth generation of the family to make wine here and carrying forward one of the appellation’s great names. Alain was the nephew of the legendary Noël Verset, and today the domaine still farms parcels inherited through both Noël and Alain’s father Louis, including old vines in Champelrose, La Geynale and Les Mazards, some more than a century old. Emmanuelle has brought greater precision and stricter farming to the domaine while keeping the winemaking resolutely traditional, with whole-cluster fermentation and no new oak, producing Cornas that feels increasingly rare in an appellation where prices have climbed dramatically. 2021 was a difficult, cool vintage, with spring frost cutting yields and a long growing season producing a more classical style of Northern Rhône Syrah less about sheer weight and more about perfume, freshness and transparency. This is a particularly elegant Verset, with dark and red fruit, violet, black pepper, olive and savory herbs wrapped around bright acidity and the granitic mineral character of Cornas. It is already remarkably expressive but has the structure to develop beautifully, and at our special pricing it remains one of the easiest Cornas buys we can recommend.
Decanter (Matt Walls) 94 points! "Hot tarmac and bonfire ash aromas - decidedly smoky, with herbal undertones. Medium- to full-bodied, there's no lack of ripeness, it's concentrated too, if not massive in size, so quite a compact style of Cornas. The tannins are vibrant, intense, textural and classic for the appellation - so you'll need to wait for them to settle. Fresh, intense, well balanced and will last. (Drink between 2027-2035)"
