Domaine Yves Cuilleron

Domaine Yves Cuilleron is a producer in the northern Rhône, making red and white wines predominantly from Syrah and Viognier, respectively. The domaine has been in the Cuilleron family for three generations, but it is the domaine's current owner and winemaker, Yves Cuilleron, who has expanded the size, scope, and scale of the estate's vineyard land holdings and winery.

Estate holdings were a mere 3.5 hectares (8.6 acres) in Condrieu and Saint-Joseph before Yves Cuilleron took over in 1987. The estate now runs to 59ha (146 acres) of vineyard land in Côte Rôtie, Crozes-Hermitage, Cornas and Saint-Péray. These vineyards are planted to Syrah, Marsanne, Roussanne, and Viognier.

Cuilleron's key wines come from the Côte Rôtie and Condrieu appellations. In Condrieu, Cuilleron owns 10ha (25 acres) of vineyard land and makes three cuvées – Chaillets, Vertige and Ayguets. These wines come from grapes that were planted as far back as 1939, and the grapes are whole-cluster pressed, fermented in barrel with indigenous yeasts, and then aged for nine months on their lees. Vertige ages much longer than the other two Condrieu wines, spending 18 months in barrel.

Several wines are made under the Côte Rôtie AOC, including the Terres Sombres, Bassenon and Madinière wines. These wines, along with the Saint-Joseph Les Serines wines, are either 100 percent Syrah or blended with a small amount of Viognier, and are aged for 18 to 20 months in oak barrels, the proportion of new oak depending on the cuvée.