Rene Rostaing, Cote Rotie, Ampodium 2009

92 Points CellarTracker Very good. This has firmed up since my last notes and lost some ripe baby fat. It is well structured, full bodied but not sloppy. Needed a solid hour decant or more. Red berry fruit, blackberry, faint pepper and earth. I had the 2009 Landonne in the last 6 months and this was showing better. 10/19/2023 Not counting the much larger Guigal domaine, Rene Rostaing is the closest thing to a true cult star that Côte-Rôtie has yet produced. A grower since 1971, his first vineyard purchases were a microscopic half acre each in Côte Blonde and in La Landonne on the Côte Brune. The real breakthrough came when his father-in-law, Albert Dervieux-Thaize retired in 1990, followed by his uncle Marius Gentaz-Dervieux three years later. Between these two legendary growers, Rostaing acquired over ten acres of very old vines in some of the appellation’s top sites. The vineyard expansion also enabled René to quit his day job in 1991, and to devote himself full time to winemaking.