Jean-Louis Chave Saint-Joseph Rouge 2021 MAGNUM

J.L. Chave, who is often referred to as "the Pope of Hermitage," is one of the most brilliantly talented winemakers today, deserving him a spot in any serious collector's cellar. Jancis Robinson says, "J.L. Chave Hermitage is arguably the greatest wine made from Syrah in the world." The Chave family is also one of the oldest names in the world of wine, producing one of the world's greatest wines since 1481. The label bears an inscription commemorating this achievement, "Vignerons de Père en Fils depuis 1481", which translates to "Vine growers from father to son since 1481". The Chave family began cultivating vineyards and making wine in what we now know as the St. Joseph appellation in the northern Rhone and started buying land on the Hill of Hermitage in 1865. The land and family business of making great Rhone wine continues to be passed on from generation to generation, most recently from father to son with Gerard Chave to Jean-Louis Chave. Jean-Louis is the 16th generation of his family to manage the famous Hermitage producer, representing 16 generations of unbroken lineage committed to the production of the finest Syrah, Marsanne, and Roussanne on the planet. This is the secret "insider" wine of the estate. Most people don't know it, but the Chave family worked in St. Joseph a few hundred years prior to their move to Hermitage and this is the original family farmstead (keep in mind they've been making wine continuously since 1481!) and where most of Jean-Louis' time is spent.