Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate2015-01-07

Unlike Burgundy and Bordeaux, the Rh?ne does not have an official cru (vineyard) classification system. There are, however, lieux-dits, “named places” or place names that denote vineyard sites and plots within each appellation. Chapoutier owns some of the most famous plots in the Rh?ne, including 34 hectares within the tiny Hermitage appellation. This collection of highly sought after wines is coined "Selections Parcellaires". These exceptional wines are created organically and biodinamically and are imported to the United States once per year.  Le M?al, a broader swath of the hill at a slightly higher elevation (150-200 meters), faces slightly more to the east. It is composed of chalk and alluvial gravelly soil rather than granite, and produces a wine of greater perfume, whether red (Syrah) or white (Marsanne). Again, the small production from a 1.37 hectare site of the nearly century-old vines, up to 550 cases for the red and 300 of the rare white, is reserved for S?lection Parcellaire labeling. Destemming and long macerations are the keys to suppleness and grace even as a young wine, though long cellaring will reward the patient taster. Le M?al owes its official “lieu dit,” in English "place name," to the old French word meaning "the best.”