Pressoir Dinner - Rayas

Nikita Malhotra
November 13, 2023

Much has been said about Rayas - it is the gem of Châteauneuf-du-Pape and is singular in its representation of this region and Grenache. Unlike the quintessential round pebbles that dominate the region’s vineyards, Rayas, composed of three separate vineyards — Le Couchant, Le Levant and Le Coeur, is planted mainly on sandy soil. Apart from the exclusive sandy soils, their unique microclimate, featuring surrounding pine and oak trees, and their northern exposure make Rayas the coolest terroir in Châteauneuf du Pape. This allows for the harvest of optimally ripe grapes while maintaining low alcohol levels, intense purity of fruit, and an elegant and silky style and texture. There is also the Reynaud style of winemaking to consider, something we had a chance to delve into with bottles like Château de Fonsalette ‘Cuvee Syrah’ 2006 and 1994. Even with a different region and grape variety, there are certain Reynaud signatures, the kirsch notes, ethereal mouth feel and Burgundian leanings, that persist in terms of the winemaker’s signature.

We started with a flight featuring Rayas Blanc 2007, Château de Fonsalette ‘Cuvee Syrah’ 2006 and Rayas ‘Pignan’ 2010. Rayas Blanc is a blend of Grenache Blanc and Clairette and is quite rare, as it is made in extremely small quantities. 2007 was a warm vintage, and the weight of the wine conveyed that. Honeyed and rich, a bit more acid would have garnered more fanfare, one this wine ultimately already receives due to its rarity. The Fonsalette and Pignan allowed for a discussion for what to look for in terms of Reynaud’s style of winemaking. There are certain vintages where I prefer Pignan to Rayas, and many at the table agreed. Pignan comes from the more northern vines, and although younger vines are planted here, the oldest vines are around 100 years.

The next flight was from 2010, 2008 and 2007 - unfortunately the 2009 was corked, but luckily Raj was able to bring his bottle of Fonsalette Cuvee Syrah 1994, which will be discussed with the last flight. I was trained to mistrust 2008 in the Southern Rhone as it sits between two great vintages, but every time I have a chance to try 2008 Rayas I am impressed. It displays all the quintessential Rayas charms. The 2008 also felt more approachable, it was ready to be enjoyed, and this being a cooler vintage meant the acidity drew out a longer finish. But this theme of appreciating the cooler vintages will come up again in other flights. And perhaps, in our justification for comparing Rayas to Burgundy, we lean towards these cooler years. The 2010 holds much promise, Emmanuel Reynaud really begins to convey his undertaking of a style his uncle managed to immortalize. It feels young, and since Emmanuel has held back vintages to the point where 2011 is the current release, it should be seen as a wine to hold.

The next flight was 2006, 2005 and 2004 - and this brought about a discussion on the transition from Jacques to Emmanuel. Jacques passed away in 1997, and his nephew Emmanuel had been making wine at Château des Tours before he took over for his uncle. These vintages represented the beginning of Emmanuel’s role as the winemaker at Rayas. His actual first vintages usually do not compare in the same way as the vintages his uncle Jacques presided over, but with this flight you see a continuation to the Rayas narrative. Sitting in the middle of this flight was a bigger more classic vintage for the region. The 2005 felt dense with higher alcohol and riper fruit. The 2004 was lean, as was to be expected in a cool vintage, but the bouquet was charming, with classic kirsch cherries and a bit of spice.

The last flight featured Raj’s rescue bottle of Château de Fonsalette ‘Cuvee Syrah’ 1994, which really stole the show. In this flight was also Rayas 1995 and 1994, so it was quite a special flight to end with. 1995 is universally a well regarded vintage, and the bottle showed well, but not as spectacular as it ought to. The 1994 Rayas delivered in terms of quintessential Rayas with age, with more Rooibos tea notes in addition to kirsch liquor. The Fonsalette proved to us that Jacques and now Emmanuel are masters of not only Grenache, but of Syrah, and the pepper and verve of Syrah matches those classic Reynaud signatures quite well. The Fonsalette also presented fresher.

All in all it was a memorable evening. Unfortunately Rayas continues to become more difficult to source and the pricing is now on par with Grand Cru Burgundy. There won’t be too many chances for a dinner like this as there were before, and it was insightful to share this wine with those who had both had many of these bottles before and with those tasting Rayas for the first time.