The Maison Paul Jaboulet Aîné was created in 1834 through the magical conjunction of a fertile land on a hillside by the Rhone and a family with a passion for winemaking.

Famed through the Hermitage La Chapelle, over the years the Domaines Paul Jaboulet Aîné took ownership of the finest appellations of the northern Rhone Valley, applying organic and biodynamic principles since taken over by the Frey family, ensuring a legacy in both vineyards and incredible wines.

The Maison Paul Jaboulet Aîné was created in 1834 through the magical conjunction of a fertile land on a hillside by the Rhone and a family with a passion for winemaking.

Famed through the Hermitage La Chapelle, over the years the Domaines Paul Jaboulet Aîné took ownership of the finest appellations of the northern Rhone Valley, applying organic and biodynamic principles since taken over by the Frey family, ensuring a legacy in both vineyards and incredible wines.

A legendary cru… Over centuries, this mythical cru has built its reputation on a single hill, and an epic history. In the beginning, the hill was home to a hermitage founded by Henri Gaspard de Sterimberg in 1224. This knight, returning from the Albigensian Crusade, and weary of bloodshed, asked permission to Blanche of Castille to take refuge from the world on the summit of this granite hill. Soon joined by others, the community began to plant vines… A charming tale, but one that overlooks the fact that the Hermitage owes only its name to the hermit: the vineyard has existed since ancient times with the famous wines of Vienne.

Soil – The Syrah vines are planted in poor and very diverse terroirs. The Bessards with very uneven granite soils, Le Meal with limestone and silica and the Rocoules with limestone and clay. It is the richness of these different exclusive terroirs which provide the La Chapelle with its signature complexity.

Grape Variety – 100% Syrah, goblet pruning on stakes

Age of vines – 40 to 60 years

Vinification – At a perfect maturity, the Syrah grapes are picked by hand, carried in small crates to the winery. They are hand sorted, destemmed and lightly crushed. The maceration on the skin lasts 3 to 4 weeks with daily pump-overs.

La Chapelle is ageing in oak in our cellars for 15 to 18 months. French Oak barrels are renewed 20% every year. The final blend is done after the end of the ageing and done through judicious selection from the terroirs of Hermitage in order to give ‘La Chapelle’ its own personality of power, ageing potential and legend.

The complexity here is of the kind that reveals a truly great wine. There are so many things happening, graphite, slate, fleshy layers of blackberry fruits that collide immediately afterwards by a tightly controlled edge of tannins, then the whole thing finishes slowly, cleanly. Incredible

Wine Advocate Robert Parker – 94 points

The top wine of the estate is the 2014 Hermitage la Chapelle, which comes mostly from the Méal lieu-dit, but also includes a sizable portion from Bessards (the blend is a cellar selection and changes from year to year). Possesses notably more minerality and powered rock nuances than the Petite Chapelle, with building blackberry, charcoal and smoked earth aromas and flavors, this medium to full-bodied Hermitage is gorgeously balanced, elegant and fresh with fine tannin. It shows the vintage’s more forward character, yet has plenty of density and concentration. It will need short term cellaring and will keep for two decades.

Caroline Frey and winemaker Jacques Desvernois continue to make a bevy of high quality wines from throughout the Rhône Valley. Both their 2014s and 2013s show the vintage character nicely, and the wines show fresher, more elegant profiles without sacrificing too much density and depth. I’d like a touch more flesh and texture in a few of these latest releases, but there’s no denying the high quality coming from this estate today. One noteworthy change here is that after decades of working with Frederick Wildman & Sons, Paul Aîné Jaboulet will now be represented in the US by New York based Skurnik Wines. Hopefully this will lead to broader distribution and more access to these wines as there’s tons of value and quality in the lineup.

James Suckling – 94 points

A blend of Le Méal (structure) and Les Bessards (flesh), the dark granitic stony influence is striking with smoky, dark stony minerals and peppery nuances. The fruit is in the blackberry, raspberry and red plum spectrum. The palate has an impressive fluid core of supple dark and red plum fruits with an undercarriage of smooth, muscular tannins. Nice balance. Drink from 2020 and beyond.