Noel Verset Cornas

I know this is completely subjective, but want to get some thoughts on Noel Verset Cornas. Northern Rhone is my love and Cornas and Cote Rotie are my favorites. I’ve had some very good Cornas, but Verset is one I have not had the chance to try. Though, the price just seems so outrageous probably because of its scarcity (I think). The most I’ve spend on Cornas is ~$300 range, which was Allemand and I thought it was spectacular. Verset is almost three times that right now according to my search. So the question is, is Verset really that much better/good to justify the price? Or would I get the same sense of pleasure from more reasonable (comparably) priced Cornas/Cote-Roties? Would love to hear some thoughts before pulling the trigger.

Alain, or Noel? I’m a huge fan of Alain Verset Cornas, but by the pricing you mention, you must not be talking Alain!

Sorry meant Noel. I’ve heard good things about Alain as well and the price range is definitely reasonable.

I adore Alain Verset…need to find more. Noel is a bit out of my pricepoint, but your post really illustrates the very wide differential in Cornas pricing - never thought much of it, but it’s rather a large vector.

Exactly. I would love to try a Noel bottle and definitely would have even if it was at Allemand price range. What it’s going for now though, I’m just not sure.

I’ve only been lucky enough to try a Noel Verset once; the 1999 in late 2012. Based on that one experience, my answer is an easy, “No.”

I haven’t had a ton – Fu is probably the resident expert – but in a small sample size (all with 25+ years of age) I can say this: they’re seductive, singular wines that provide a very different impression than Allemand or any other Cornas I’ve ever had. With age, they’re fragrant, ethereal, and open-knit – almost delicate – but also wild, rustic, complex, and savory. Cornas with an bloody, meaty iron fist in a velvet glove. Not nearly as polished and dense as Allemand but much more haunting.

Is it worth it? Hard to say. As you say, the intense price escalation seems to be largely due to scarcity and the fact that the winery no longer exists. And I wouldn’t say it’s better than Allemand or Chave or whatever. But the quality is undeniably there.

(I do get the sense that there’s significant bottle variation.)

Noël Verset stopped making wine in 06 and died, I think, in 2015. The increasing rarity of the wine naturally drives the price to absurd heights. Geezer that I am, I remember buying the wine for $12.50 in 1990. It’s unsurprising that these wines now bring in a price for their rarity. I don’t think anyone makes wines quite like him, any more than anyone makes wine quite like anyone else. But there is a lot of good one out there for a lot less. His nephew, Franck Balthazar, to my mind, makes an excellent Cornas. When he dies, no doubt, people will be kicking themselves for not buying the wine back when it was only $70 to $80.

Thanks for the note Ryan. The significant bottle variation worries me now especially given the price I would have to pay. It really won’t be ‘oh well, on to the next one’ with this purchase!

I had no idea Franck Balthazar was his nephew! I have a few bottles of Chaillot in the cellar, now need to try them and recall this is the closest I might get to Noel Verset

As Ryan says I find it very different from Allemand. There is a wildness to Verset that I enjoy very much. Sometimes it’s meaty and bloody, other times it’s uncannily marine. The fruit tends to be red and bright, whereas I perceive Allemand to be darker and rounder. I was able to get my hands on some a few years ago, when the prices were more reasonable, and they were more than worth it. But I don’t think they’re quite as singular as say Rayas, and any price above say $500-700 reflects more of a scarcity premium

The 1999 I’ve heard is particularly infamous for bottle variation. However in recent years I’ve had the 1990 three times, from 3 different sources, and found it quite consistent

You are a lucky man! I don’t think I’ll ever find a bottle at $500 range anymore. Your note, however, is really tempting me to pull the trigger haha.

Yea that was a great post by Jonathan.

I remember buying a bottle (stateside) sometime in the early 90’s for $25, and not knowing anything about it. As I recall it tasted very much like wet slate / stone and given all the fuss people accord to it (now) I didn’t think it was great shakes or anything. Never had it again…

+1

Also, I believe he sold off a fair deal of his vineyards in the years leading up to retirement, so production in those last years was really miniscule.

The style is quite different from Clape, Allemand or Balthazaar, showing much more acidity. The few bottles I’ve had over the past decade (1995, 1996, 1999, 2000) have needed a very long decant for the fruit to come out. At first, the acidity dominated and they weren’t very pleasant. They aren’t fleshy. They need food – meat, preferably, or something with some acid (e.g., perhaps something with tomatoes). But good bottles have fabulous aromatics after some breathing time.

The last bottle I opened was a '99 at an event Jay Miller hosted in February 2017. Jayson Cohen was there, too. It was glorious after 90 minutes of air, but still somewhat taut and lean. It’s been a while since I’ve had an Allemand or a Balthazaar, but I think of them as having riper fruit. They are easier to appreciate.

Given the prices, I wouldn’t spring for these as a learning experience. The style may not be for everyone, and with this much age, there’s a risk of bottles that aren’t pristine, or I’m sure there is bottle variation, as his cellar was very primitive. (I visited in 1988.) At 20+ years, you are pushing your luck.

Finally, the importer might be a factor. My remaining bottles were bought in NYC. I don’t remember the importer, but I’m pretty sure they don’t have Kermit Lynch’s strip. KL sometimes had his pick of the best barrels from his producers, so there could be different lots.

Unfortunately, Noel Verset’s Cornas are ethereal and stand head and shoulders above other producers in the appellation. The price is the price, but having had many bottles along with greats from JL Chave, Gentaz, Trollat, and other legends, Noel Verset fits squarely in that pantheon.

Any fan of N Rhone wines should endeavor to try a few.

Verset towers over all other Cornas at least as much as Chave in Hermitage, so unfortunately if Northern Rhones are your thing it’s something you’ll just have to suck it up and find a way to try. However, it’s not without risk - brett is an issue not infrequently. Also, I forget the exact point but the last several vintages were made after some of the core vineyards were sold off and were missing something, so for the full experience I think you’ll want one from the '90s or earlier. The good news is they’re all ready to drink.

I’m with Yaacov and Keith on this one. As good as Allemand is, Verset was a real magician before he sold off or gave to his heirs some of his best vineyards. The best Cornas, period.

I only have 3 bottles left unfortunately, and the prices are now beyond what I’d be willing to pay and undeniably daunting for anyone who is price sensitive.

I’ve had a few. And used to try them every now and then at a local tasting bar. Verset is nothing like Allemand, particularly accounting for the fact that any Verset you get now will be 20+ years old. Verset is more elegant and light footed, really lovely and interesting syrah. But, and this goes back to the current thread on the gap between very best and very good, if you give me the choice of trying Verset for the first time, and $1000 in my pocket, I take the $1000. It won’t change your life, it’ll just give you a data point on one bottle from one vintage at this point in time. If that data point is worth more to you than the money, do it. Do keep in mind that Verset sold off most of his vineyard holdings as he was nearing retirement, so his later vintages were made with different fruit than his prime vintages. I don’t know the exact years, but I believe anything after about 2000.

I still have a bottle each of 85, 89, 90, and 91 – all purchased from Premier Cru in 2013 for $60-125 per. Doesn’t quite make up for all the money they stole from me, but it does dull the pain.

If anyone finds themselves in Houston, maybe we’ll open one.