Vintage Chart for Northern Rhône

2018	***	A warm year, shaping up to be a very rich vintage, round and ripe, sometimes powerful for the reds, perhaps a bit too powerful for some whites.
2017	**	Many challenging conditions, including frost early in season. Dry and warm in September and October, one of the earliest harvests on record, regarded as excellent in all appellations, but with low quantities all round.
2016	**	Late start to season, reduced yields from hail in Hermitage and Crozes-Hermitage, rain in August, but small crop. More classical style than the richness of 2015, meaning restrained and elegant. Whites are especially notable. "For me, this is the most elegant," says Pierre Gonon.
2015	***	A top vintage with potential for great wines in a ripe, rich style. Most producers prefer 2015 to 2016, but some favor 2016.
2014		Difficulties in reaching ripeness for black grapes make this a year to approach cautiously. Rain around harvest was a problem.
2013	*	Good, but not a great year, with an unusually late harvest compensating for difficulties during the growing season.
2012	**	Michel Chapoutier describes the vintage as "pure classicism," which means elegant fruits retaining freshness.
2011	*	Warm but not especially sunny; good but not as classic as 2010 or as ripe as 2009, with some dilution resulting from rain in September.
2010	***	Classic vintage giving textbook Syrah, fresh with good tension, widely regarded as having perfect balance and offering longevity.
2009	***	The vintage received widespread acclaim for its sheer ripeness: the wines are very appealing.
2008		Vintage was spoiled by high rainfall in the summer. Some top cuvées were not produced.

For older vintages see Northern Rhône or Vintages

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