France · Rhône Valley

Thierry Allemand

Thierry Allemand is the most revered producer in Cornas, the small granite-based northern Rhône appellation south of Saint-Joseph, farming approximately 3.5 hectares of steep terraced hillside vineyards that include some of the oldest Syrah plantings in France. Allemand began farming his land — much of it abandoned terraces he reclaimed from the garrigue — in the early 1980s, working without herbicides or pesticides from the outset in an era when such practices were rare. He produces two wines: Chaillot, from younger vines on the lower terraces, and Reynard, from the oldest vines (some exceeding 80 years) on the highest granite and decomposed soil terraces. Both are 100% Syrah, aged in large older oak foudres, and produce wines of extraordinary tension, minerality, and longevity that have earned comparison to the greatest Côte-Rôtie. Parker scored the 2003 Reynard 100 points, and multiple vintages from both wines earn 96–100 points. With 547 lots averaging $316 per bottle — among the highest averages of any Rhône producer — Allemand's wines attract fierce competition at auction. Production is tiny: approximately 4,000–6,000 bottles of Reynard and slightly more of Chaillot per vintage, making allocation effectively impossible through normal channels.