葡萄详情

Syrah – Viognier wines come from an unlikely partnership (a white-wine grape and a red-wine grape), but a highly successful one nonetheless. The blend first appeared in the northern Rhone Valley, and has now spread to various parts of the New World, most obviously California and Australia.

Invariably, this blend is used to make red wines, with Syrah (aka Shiraz in Australia) the dominant component. Viognier rarely constitutes more than 15 percent of the blend. Even in these small quantities, it makes a significant difference to the final wine, lifting its perfume and enlivening its colors.

The traditional home of the Syrah – Viognier blend is Cote Rotie, the northern Rhone Valley's "roasted slope". In Cote Rotie wines, Viognier may legally constitute up to 20 percent of the final blend, although 10 percent is closer to the norm. Despite the success of Cote Rotie and its wines, the fashion for enlivening Syrah wines with a splash of Viognier has not caught on in other northern Rhone wine districts. In Saint-Joseph, Crozes-Hermitage and Hermitage, the red wines may contain a little Marsanne or Roussanne (but no Viognier), while in Cornas the wines must be 100 percent, full-blooded Syrah.

In Australia the Shiraz – Viognier blend is now very well established. It is produced widely in both South Australia (Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale) and Victoria (Yarra Valley), and is increasingly common in New South Wales and Western Australia. In these warmer climes, the super-ripe Viognier adds notes of apricot and ripe peach to the spicy, plummy, full-bodied Shiraz.

In the United States, the blend is limited almost entirely to California's Central Coast regions, the spiritual home of the "Rhone Rangers". The Santa Ynez and Santa Maria valleys of Santa Barbara County are arguably the source of the highest-quality Californian Syrah – Viognier wines.

Other New World countries producing the blend include South Africa, New Zealand, Argentina and Chile.

Most winemakers choose to co-ferment their Syrah and Viognier when producing these wines, rather than to blend them after fermentation. There are various forms in which the Viognier is added to the Syrah: as whole bunches, whole grapes, pressed skins or free-run juice. Fermenting the varieties together serves to stabilize and brighten the color of the final wine.

Food matches for Syrah – Viognier wines include:

• Salt-crusted pork with gnocchi in sage butter
• Lamb with apricot and walnut stuffing
• Slow-cooked beef casserole