Thierry Allemand Cornas "Reynard" 2022
(Cornas, Northern Rhone, France) 750 mL - [JS 100] [JD 96-98]

About the Winery:
Today, there is no more unique figure in the Northern Rhône than Cornas’ Thiérry Allemand. Though not yet in his 50s, he has been mythologized in much the same way as past greats like Noël Verset, Marius Gentaz and August Clape. He created his domaine from scratch, inheriting nothing from his ancestors. And because he also didn’t have a family fortune behind him, much of his domaine was assembled by laboriously restoring abandoned parcels in great terroirs.

Finally, while deeply rooted in the past, Thiérry’s approach to winemaking is uniquely his. He began in the early 1980s by learning at the feet of two Cornas legends, Joseph Michel and Noël Verset, and has gone on to apply a quarter century of personal experience. He has arrived, finally, at a philosophy that, while squarely in the traditional camp, produces wine whose purity and expression of grape variety and place are unrivaled by anyone in Cornas.

About this Wine:
Cornas Reynard brings together the fruit from the domaine’s oldest and best vines, based on Noël and Louis Verset’s ancient vines in Reynard, and including Geynale, Pigeonners and even some old vines in Chaillot.

Techinical Information

Varietal: 100% Syrah
Vine Age: 34-90 yrs
Soil Type: Decomposed Granite
Vineyard Area: 2.02 ha

Viticulture & Vinification:
• Farms organically, working steep, terraced vineyards all by hand (no tractor!)
• Dense plantings naturally reduce yields (< 30 hectoliters per hectare)
• All wines are fermented in stainless steel and open-top wooden vats
• Stems left on cluster during fermentation
• Punch-downs by foot
• All wines are vinified separately
• Wines aged in foudres and barriques for 24 months before final blending and bottling
• Finished wines are bottled unfined and unfiltered
• Very low doses of sulfur, sometimes none at all

Ratings & Reviews

100 Points - James Suckling:
"It's hard to wrap your head around how a red wine can have this enormous concentration and giant structure, yet be so refined and silky. Aromas of Damson plums, black raspberries and Amarena cherries exactly fill out the mouth-filling yet incredibly precise palate. Then comes the breathtaking finish that is as graceful as a great dancer who leaps effortlessly from one side of the stage to the other. From old vines in the Reynard site. 100% whole-cluster fermentation that starts as carbonic maceration, then a handful of punchdowns. Matured in large oak foudre casks. Drink or hold." (Apr 2025)

93-95 Points - Jeb Dunnuck:
"Coming largely from the granite, south-facing soils of the Reynard lieu-dit and aged in used barrels, the 2022 Cornas Reynard reveals a beautiful array of red, blue, and black fruits, violets, spice, pepper, and orange zest. The class and purity here are something else, and it's medium to full-bodied, focused, and beautifully balanced, with fine tannins and remarkable elegance. This is a sensational Cornas in the making." (May 2025)