The Wines of Saint Joseph in the Northern Rhone Valley have come a long way since the 1980’s when a kilogram of apricots was worth more than a kilogram of grapes.
Wine like this is an echo of its terroir — in the case of Saint-Joseph, a thin, low-yielding soil that barely covers the tough, granite banks of the Rhône. Making wine here is hard work — and expensive.
These days the best producers of St Joseph are in a position to be able to offer only small yearly allocations to their importers.

Domaine Durand 2017 Saint-Joseph Blanc
$39.95 per bottle / six packs
Last week we premiered the delicious and fast selling Domaine Durand Cornas, this time around we have the white sibling from the Durand Brothers making an entrance. The St Joseph Blanc derives from vines planted on a unique limestone section of the St Joseph appellation, whose soil and situation are best suited for the white grapes of Marsanne and Roussanne.
The nose is unctuous with sun ripe yellow stone fruit, red apple, tropical fruit and strong floral notes, this wine has the weight of a full blooded white Burgundy coupled with a deeper more exotic finish.
In the mouth the wine blasts off with beeswax notes, minerality and serious depth. An oily texture plays off nicely with  a bright citrus-pith acidity.