Domaine du Tunnel is situated in an old steam train tunnel, in the charming village of Saint-Péray in the Northern Rhône. This small, family domaine is run by winemaker Stéphane Robert and his wife Sandrine. Stéphane started out in 1994 by renting vines, when he was just 24 years old. He now owns 10 hectares of vines in Cornas, Saint-Péray and Saint-Joseph.
Stéphane’s Cornas is made from 15 parcels of Syrah from several lieux-dits. Blending across parcels gives this wine layers of complexity and character. It also spends 14 months in four-year-old oak barriques to add roundness without masking the fruit. The result is a lovely deep colour, a vibrant and spicy nose of fragrant black fruits and smooth, structured tannins. The Saint-Péray is made from 100% Roussanne, fermented in a combination of stainless steel and four-year-old barriques, before ageing on its lees for nine months. The wine has delicate aromas of white flowers and grapefruit with lively acidity. Both of Stéphane’s wines have lovely concentration of fruit and a profoundly elegant character.
