Domaine Belle, and a tasting in google translate
Our first tasting was at Domaine Belle in Crozes-Hermitage, and what a fun, humbling experience that was.
Neither of us spoke French and our host did not speak English, so the whole thing happened through google translate.
It made for a slow tasting, but such a lovely one, full of fun and respect on both sides. There was no tour through the vines or extra cellar time, we would have been there all day otherwise, but I loved it anyway.
Their vines are trained in the shape of a horseshoe, which I found fascinating, though the language barrier meant we never quite got to the bottom of why, or how it helps the berries.
After the tasting we took a random left turn and ended up driving right to the top of Hermitage hill. Coming to a crossroads signposted Tain Hermitage one way and Crozes Hermitage the other, we genuinely could not decide which way to go, though it hardly mattered, either direction would have been epic, both famous, both full of incredible wine.
We arrived at our hotel looking out over the Rhone, with vines on the far bank I desperately wanted to visit. There was a wonderfully stylish little vin bar just four metres from our door, Hermitage hill wrapping around behind us, Le Bateauivre, Cave et Bar a Vins, and it had the biggest wine list I have seen in a long while. We spent a happy hour there just watching people come and go.
