Alistair Cooper MW

United Kingdom

Master of Wine based in Henley on Thames, Oxfordshire. Wine writer on https://t.co/tjEvXQ8Gje. Wine consultant, journalist,judge & huge Leicester Tigers fan🐯

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Articles

Chile's Norte Verde - limestone oases in the desert

1 month ago | jancisrobinson.com | Alistair Cooper MW

Despite desert-like conditions, great wines are coming from pockets of limestone along Chile’s northern Pacific Coast. The Talinay vineyard in coastal Limarí is pictured above. Using ‘Norte Verde’ (The Green North) to refer to Chile’s arid northern landscape might sound like an oxymoron. Yet it has been coined by a group of intrepid producers to promote the green vineyard oases that dot the landscape nearing the Atacama Desert.
Rhône 2023 - other southern whites, rosés and VDNs

Dec 3, 2024 | jancisrobinson.com | Alistair Cooper MW

Concluding his survey of the southern Rhône, Ali finds that 2023 was a rosy vintage for the rosés of Tavel. See this guide for all our extensive coverage of the 2023 vintage in the Rhône Valley. Above, Tavel vineyards photographed by Christophe Grilhé courtesy of Inter Rhône. Largely it was relatively successful vintage for the whites. Cairanne performed well, with good levels of freshness to be found. Over in Tavel, quality was high.
Rhône 2023 - other southern reds

Dec 1, 2024 | jancisrobinson.com | Alistair Cooper MW

A ton of great, ready-to-enjoy Côtes du Rhône reds here, as well as some structured, ageworthy cru wines. See this guide for all our extensive coverage of the 2023 vintage in the Rhône Valley. Across the board, Rhône's southern crus largely turned out good-quality red wines in 2023. Cairanne, Lirac and Rasteau were arguably the pick, with balanced and attractive wines aplenty.
Domaine Michel Chapoutier, Ermitage Le Méal 2023

Nov 28, 2024 | cluboenologique.com | Alistair Cooper MW

Tasted on XX/XX/XXXX Tasted by Please, sign in for details Tasted in Please, sign in for details Please, sign in for details Drinking Window XXXX - XXXX The Collection To see tasting notes and scores Get full access to The Collection
Domaine Michel Chapoutier, Ermitage Le Méal Blanc 2023

Nov 28, 2024 | cluboenologique.com | Alistair Cooper MW

Tasted on XX/XX/XXXX Tasted by Please, sign in for details Tasted in Please, sign in for details Please, sign in for details Drinking Window XXXX - XXXX The Collection To see tasting notes and scores Get full access to The Collection
Rhône 2023 - Gigondas and Vacqueyras reds

Nov 25, 2024 | jancisrobinson.com | Alistair Cooper MW

A challenging vintage for vineyards on sandy, light soils, though if you look hard enough, you'll find some impressive wines. Ali has done a considerable amount of the legwork here. See this guide for all our extensive coverage of the 2023 vintage in the Rhône Valley. Quality in Gigondas was more variable than in some other crus.
Rhône 2023 - Châteauneuf-du-Pape whites

Nov 19, 2024 | jancisrobinson.com | Alistair Cooper MW

Rich, ripe and approachable, with the best wines cellar-worthy to boot. See this guide to all our coverage of the 2023 vintage in the Rhône Valley. Above, the harvest team at Le Clos du Caillou, producers of a particularly successful, organic, white Châteauneuf in 2023. Overall I would say that 2023 was as successful a white vintage as it was red vintage in Châteauneuf.
Rhône 2023 - Châteauneuf-du-Pape reds

Nov 18, 2024 | jancisrobinson.com | Alistair Cooper MW

Vintage 2023 saw intense heat in the southern Rhône, but the best Châteauneuf-du-Pape reds are stunning. See this guide to all our coverage of the 2023 vintage in the Rhône Valley. In Châteauneuf-du-Pape there are some extremely high-quality red wines to be found, yet in this vintage, choosing carefully is key. Vincent Avril of Clos des Papes was exceptionally pleased with the 2023, ‘I really think it could turn out to be one of the finest vintages, for us at least.
Vintage 2023 - southern Rhône

Nov 17, 2024 | jancisrobinson.com | Alistair Cooper MW

Record-breaking heat in Châteauneuf-du-Pape and environs led to some powerful wines. Ali reports from two weeks of travel and tasting through the region. Gigondas vines pictured above, courtesy of Domaine Santa Duc. See also Rhône 2023 – a guide. The southern Rhône has largely enjoyed a string of good to excellent vintages in recent years, decades in fact. Yet there nearly always seems to be one or two (or in the case of 2021, several) climatic events that shape the vintage significantly.
Gigondas Blanc is here

Jul 16, 2024 | jancisrobinson.com | Alistair Cooper MW

As of the 2023 vintage, white wines are allowed to be produced in this prestigious Rhône appellation. Ali got to taste the very first examples at the launch on 1 July. After a hard-fought 11-year campaign, the INAO finally granted Gigondas the right to label their white wines as AOC Gigondas in September 2022. Permission to do so was given from the 2023 vintage onwards, so it is only now that we will see these wines beginning to appear on the market.