I have been following the resurgence of Jean-Luc Jamet with great interest over the past 2 or 3 vintages. Afterall, the Côte-Rôties of the greater Jamet family have long been regarded as the benchmark wines of the region within the Northern Rhone. In 2013, brothers Jean-Luc and Jean-Paul announced that they would be splitting up the family’s domaine.

For many years, Jean-Paul was the face of the domaine and Jean-Luc was the steady hand in the vineyards. Jean-Luc has now stepped out of the proverbial shadows and returned to the fine wine arena with a resounding winemaking bang. His Les Terrasses Cote Rotie 2015 is a sensational expression and his basic Vin de Pays La Valine Syrah 2014 also an absolute beauty and better than most producers top Cotes du Rhone reds.

Jean-Luc also makes some fabulous mineral whites and among my first introductions was drinking a bottle of his Cotes du Rhone Blanc 2013 with Jamie Goode, the renowned wine journalist. I remember him commenting on not only it’s seriously stony, austere minerality but also it’s almost Chablis-like freshness and restraint. Having just tasted my first ever Jean-Paul & Corinne Jamet Cotes du Rhone Blanc recently, I was keen to put this Jean-Luc Jamet 2016 white through its paces to compare and contrast.

Jean-Luc Jamet Couzou Cotes du Rhone Blanc 2016, 14 Abv.

A blend of Marsanne, Roussanne and Viognier grapes from vines grown on Granitic Argileux soils. The wine has a beautifully rich straw yellow colour while the aromatics of this cuvee are more restrained and tantalisingly austere with intense notes of cut lemon, stony gravel, wet stones, chalk tuffa and subtle petrichor notes. The well integrated struck match reduction notes connect the nose intricately to the palate which is build around intense mineral laden complexity, white peach stone fruits, ginger spice and a sappy tangerine peel pith. An intense, complex, sophisticated white Rhone expression with well judged acidity freshness, salinity and incredibly well managed reductive complexity. You can enjoy this now but it will undoubtedly get better with another year or two of ageing. A cracking white for Jamet junkies.

(Wine Safari Score: 94/100 Greg Sherwood MW)