Burgundy-trained Stphane Ogier is a northern Rhne wunderkind, says Master of Wine Jancis Robinson. He makes this full bodied, fresh southern Rhne blend of about 60% Grenache and 40% Syrah from vines substantially grown in Viols on Le Plan de Dieu supplemented by some from Visan. Soils are a mixture of limestone and blue clay. Average vine density is 7,000 vines per hectare with the average age a very heartening 30 to 50 years. Vines are hand-harvested yields averaging 40 hl/ha before being sorted in both vineyard and cellar.

Ogier joined his father Michel in 1997 to work the family vineyards and built a glamorous new winery just south of Ampuis overlooked by the steep Cte Rtie terraces. And he has now built a second winery in the southern Rhne to make wines like Le Temps est Venu without having to ship the grapes too far.