Domaine Romaneaux-Destezet was created in 1993 by Hervé Souhaut. His holdings on the acidic granite soils of the northern Rhône and the southern Ardèche are a mixture of new and ancient vines—from 50 to over 100 years old.  Hervé works 5-hectares of these old and ancient vines, a beautiful and precious resource. He owns two vineyards in Saint-Joseph, just opposite the terraces of Hermitage. This region is, of course, legendary for the quality of its wines, thanks in part to its elevation, ancient vineyard sites, and southeastern and southern exposures. The domaine itself is located further into the hills of the northern Ardeche in the tiny town of Arlebosc, about a 30-minute drive, winding through the hills from St Joseph and the winery is underneath the 16th century “les romaneaux” fortified farm and sits in the middle of the vines that make up the Souteronne, Syrah, and white cuvées.

A new wine, this vintage is the Saint-Joseph Blanc “Etrati”. This cuvee is from young vines trained in gobelet and farmed sustainably without chemicals and with maximum respect for the environment. Yields are very small. The grapes are whole bunch pressed into stainless steel, where the wine undergoes cool fermentation and, after eight months on the fine lees, is bottled with a light filtration and low sulphite addition. Named after the lieux-dit, Etrati is 100% Roussanne, and Hervé’s version shows elements of beeswax, orange blossom and quince with a beautiful texture in the mouth.