Château-Grillet, Elixirs of the fire by Thierry Weber | Tonnerre de l'Est

“Château-Grillet...” Is there anyone interested in the world of wine who has not heard this short and sharp, yet enigmatic name? But does anyone have the words or impressions to describe it? In short: is there any wine as renowned, yet secret, as Château-Grillet?

Château-Grillet? While we can situate this estate and this appellation at the heart of Condrieu, it is highly likely that this is where our knowledge of it ends, unaware of what the Château actually represents: an appellation all of its own – one of the smallest in France. We may also have read that the wine from Château-Grillet was ranked among the five greatest white wines in France by Curnonsky, the “Prince of the Gastronomes”.

But beyond these few snippets of information, what else might we discover?

Château-Grillet! Through the pages of this book, we will enter a fundamental site in the history of the vines, a birthplace of the viognier grape, the source of a truly remarkable wine hewn from a singular, fiery terroir. A wine of endless acclaim that has transcended the centuries and, in recent years, experienced a major renaissance thanks to viticulture that is as passionate as it is mindful of the ecology of these vines and the site as a whole.

This book – the first to be dedicated to Château-Grillet – is certified by Artemis Domaines (Château Latour, Clos de Tart, Domaine d’Eugénie, Eisele Vineyard), which owns Château-Grillet. It has been written with the help of archive material from Château-Grillet, in order to produce an unprecedented documentary and chronological source.