The Gerin family has lived in Ampuis in the heart of the Côte-Rôtie for six generations. Jean-Michel Gerin established his own vineyards in 1983 with plots in the Côte-Rôtie and Condrieu appellations and two very fine parcels in La Landonne and Les Grandes Places. His vines are tended the traditional way, by hand and without the use of chemical fertilisers or herbicides with organic conversion starting in 2020. Extraction is a priority throughout the vinification process and the wines are aged in low-capacity oak barrels. Jean-Michel's wines are concentrated and impressively velvety. His 17-hectare property takes in the Condrieu and Saint-Joseph appellations and the Collines Rhodaniennes IGP. Along with his wife, Monique, he represents the new wave of Côte-Rôtie producers even though his considerable experience gives his wines plenty of depth and finesse. In 2002 he also embarked on an additional venture, much further south in the sunny Priorat wine region, alongside friends Laurent Combier and Peter Fischer.

Cuvée Champin le Seigneur comes from vines which are younger than those in les Grandes Places (10 to 50 years old), however the aim is the same: to allow the Syrah to express itself in the best possible way. In the different northern terroirs of the appellation, here it is planted with Viognier (10%) which gives it roundness and charm, and it finds its place in perfect equilibrium. Maceration is done in stainless steel vats for 3 weeks and ageing will be less pronounced in this cuvée: only half of the barriques are new; a proportion is perfectly suitable to the potential of the wine’s powerfulness.