Jean-Luc COLOMBO From the Heart & Soul of the Rhne Slide 2 A
little history 1982: Jean Luc moved to Cornas with his wife Anne to
set up a pharmacy & an oenology lab 1986: Bought les Ruchets
(First vineyard) 1987: First vintage of Les Ruchets 1988: Went to
Vinexpo with 1 st vintage & all the wine was sold to an
American broker who established Colombo in USA (our first market)
1993: Sold pharmacy and invested in vineyards and house in the
heart of Cornas vineyards 1995: Started a negoce with 100,000
bottles of Cotes du Rhone 1996: Bought land in the Blue Coast to
create a vineyard linked to his Marseille origins 2005: First
Vintage of Vallon de lAigle, a rare cuve only made in the best
vintages 2008: Jean-Luc and Anne received the French Lgion dHonneur
2009: Creation of a new winery in Cornas 2010: First Vinification
of Laure in Cornas Slide 3 The Wine for the Colombos A Family Tale!
Slide 4 Jean-Luc Colombo is a man of warmth, energy, passion and an
insatiable appetite for the Good Things in Life. His dedication to
the plaisirs de la table took root early, stemming from many long
and happy hours spent as a small boy, assisting his mother (a
talented restaurateur in Marseille) in the kitchen. His hospitality
is legendary and he is always eager and ready to entertain and
surprise his Provencal friends and overseas visitors with
unforgettable meals as many will testify. He is equally a man of
deep convictions, who can always be relied on to ably defend the
rich cultural heritage of the French gastronomy. THE KEY WORDS FOR
WINES: Balance, Elegance & Finesse A way of life! The Wine for
the Colombos Slide 5 76 000 ha in total, 4% only in the North
Southern Rhne Mostly GSM (Grenache Syrah Mourvdre) Mediteraneen
influence ( garigue flavour ) Northern Rhne Place where Syrah and
Viognier grape variety were born Origin Very steep slopes
Everything is done by hand Wines with strong personality, very
refined and recognised by gourmets The Rhne Valley Slide 6 Cornas
100% Syrah The Original Syrah! The Smallest appellation in the Rhne
Valley: 100 ha Steep hillsides: everything is done by hand Soil :
Pure granite, very rocky where roots go very deep Cornas
appellation has been rated the #1 Quality Appellation in the Rhne
Valley by THE wine magazine in France, La Revue du Vin de France
Wine Spectator in 2008 also wrote about Cornas as the growing
appellation the one to watch! Slide 7 Viticulture Philosophy The
vineyard of Cornas: Living in the middle of their vineyards in
Cornas, Jean-Luc and Anne have always wanted to preserve their
environment by acting in harmony with natures abundance. It is
essential to them to maintain an atmosphere where insects, animals
and grapevines co-exist and flourish. Slide 8 Being close from
nature Thus, for many years organic methods have been used in their
vineyards: No pesticides or weed-killers are used in the vineyards.
A 5 cm bark mulch layer covers some parts of the vineyards to limit
erosion and to maintain natural microbial life and humidity in the
soils while retarding the growth of plants which compete with the
vines for water and nutrients. In some other parts of the vineyards
the soil is plough with the help of horses. Slide 9 Planting and
preservation of local vegetal varieties along the edges of the
vineyards allow fauna and flora biodiversity while improving the
sanitary health of the vines and other life forms in the vineyards.
Irrigation is simply banned from the vineyards which results in
deep rooting of the vines, thus allowing full and pure expression
of the entire terroir, in keeping with the uniqueness of each
vintage. Laure has begun the official certification process in
2012, to confirm the organic status of the Domaine. Being close
from nature Slide 10 Jean-Luc and Anne have a strong connection
with bees and are very proud and protective of the 4 beehives
producing honey in their Cornas vineyard. The very first plot they
purchased in 1986 was named Les Ruchets, meaning The Beehives, in
honour of the bee colonies found on the property. Later on they
named their white and red Ctes du Rhne Les Abeilles, meaning The
Bees, as a renewed tribute to the mysterious dwellers of the
vineyards. Bee Helpful Slide 11 Honeybees pollinate more than 90%
of flowering crops including many of the fruit and food items we
eat, thus playing a vital role in our food supply. In many places
around the world, however, bee colonies are in severe jeopardy. The
causes for Colony Collapse Disorder remain unknown while the
phenomenon is worsening at an alarming rate. To help fight this bee
crisis, the Colombos have created the JLC Bee Helpful programme in
the US and UK, with donations going to several organizations
dedicated to research and development of methods to bring back the
honeybee colonies. Bee Helpful Slide 12 Classic winemaking process
to respect the fruit Vinification and ageing serve to define a
style that should exalt elegance and complexity with good fruit and
freshness Very good balance is the top priority Minerality /
Alcohol /Tannins and no sugar Wines that are made mostly to pair
with food Gourmet Wines! Winemaking Philosphy Slide 13 Painter and
illustrator Marie Annick Dutreil first painted Jean-Luc Colombos
vineyards in her elegant, delicate, inspired style before she was
asked to create the labels for the Colombo family. "Just go to
Cornas, says she, listen to the Colombos and like an echo you will
hear the vines praise the soil, love songs escape from the hands
that work on them, and the poetry inhabiting their souls.
Everything is vertical there and music from the heart rises up like
the aromas. This brought me inspiration and joy in the intimacy of
my studio, when I was creating labels that would match the fervor,
spirit and elegance of the wines, in the same way clever and
elegant accessories enhance the beauty of a haute-couture dress.
The painters word Slide 14 Our wines! Slide 15 Elyse palace Alain
Ducasse Jol Robuchon Paul Bocuse Guy savoy Georges Blanc Michel
Troisgros Le petit Nice LAuberge de lIll Arnsbourg The famous
tables JF Pige Seagrill Comme chez soi Jean Georges Le Gavroche The
French Laundry Lung King Heen Le caprice Daniel Boulud Slide 16
Jean-Luc Colombo agite la Valle du Rhne. Un Cornas qui figure parmi
les meilleurs crus. Le Figaro After all is said and done, the proof
is whats inside the bottle, and Colombos Cornas are outstanding
wines. Wine Spectator Bekannnt als der Meister des Syrah Vinum
Named one of the Top 100 Wineries of the year 2008 Wine &
Spirit Magazine. Winzer des Jhres 2005. Wein Gourmet Les Ruchets
2007 among the wines of the Year Decanter Les Ruchets 2001 parmi
les 1500 meilleures bouteilles de lanne. Man of the year in the
Rhone Valley (2004) Le Revue du Vin de France Avec sa faconde, sa
gourmandise de vie et son incroyable capacit raliser ses
innombrables ides, Jean-Luc Colombo est un des personnages des plus
attachants du vignoble franais. Bettane et Dessauve Among the most
profund wines of Cornas : La Louve and Les Ruchets Robert Parker
Jean-Luc Colombo, o homem que mostrou ao mundo que a regio de
Cornas, no Rhne, capaz de produzir vinhos em um estilo mais
elegant. Wine Style Brazil Un Cornas comparable aux plus grands
crus Le Monde Very Elegant and impressive Condrieu Sommelier India
An international fame Slide 17 Anne receive the Lgion dHonneur With
Christine Lagarde, ex-French Finance Minister Director of I M F
Slide 18 A word from the Chef It has been a long time since a
Cornas impressed me as much as this one does for its balance,
elegance, power and complexity. This wine has beautiful colour, a
nice length, sweet tannins and..... I could go on and on. It is a
wine with a strong personality (dont forget: it is a Cornas!), all
the elements are there to make it a wine for aging, but
surprisingly the pleasure is immediate apparent. Without too much
daring, we can say that this superb wine could perfectly couple
with a wild hare or with a steak with wild mushrooms (boletus
mushrooms). Antoine Hernandez, Director - Sommelier and partner of
Jol Robuchon has highly enjoyed the Cornas La Louve 2009 Slide 19
Slide 20 Wine & Spirit JLC parmi les 100 meilleures domaines du
monde en terme de qualit, volume, rgularit et valeur en 2008 La mme
anne, la Valle du Rhne se classe meilleure rgion viticole au monde
dans le Wine Enthusiast! Slide 21 2 Superbes articles sur Cornas et
Jean-Luc Colombo 4 Pages disponibles sur le dveloppement de Cornas
et le rle jou par Jean-Luc Colombo. 2 pages de description du
profile de Jean-Luc Colombo et de ses Cornas 2005. Slide 22 Slide
23 Slide 24 Slide 25 Slide 26
