When I was about fourteen my father sat me down in front of a bottle of Volnay and explained the principles of wine tasting. He told me that any well-made wine would display a first taste on contact with the palate, a second taste as the wine warms in the mouth, and finally an aftertaste once swallowed. Nothing novel in this, you can find similar descriptions in any book on wine. But I mention it, because thirty years went by before I tasted a wine that clearly displayed those three distinct and discrete tastes. The wine that finally clarified what my father had told me was a single vineyard estate-bottled Condrieu, one of the most northerly white wines of the Rhone Valley, which I tasted in Valence, in Michel Chabrun's two-star restaurant. Made entirely from the viognier grape, it is possibly one of the most remarkable wines I've ever tasted.

The Rhone rises in Switzerland and makes its way southwards across the Massif Central, past Lyons and finally meets the Mediterranean Sea at Marseilles. Much of the riverside is planted in vine. The northern section that runs from Vienne to Valence contains Condrieu and Cote Rotie at the very north and St Joseph, Cornas and Crozes Hermitage at the southern end. Apart from a small section of river at Die, from Valence to Avignon the river is virtually devoid of vines. But from Bollene just north of Avignon the plantings become hard to ignore, stretchings over huge areas. This is the section that contains the Rhone's most famous wine; Chateau Neuf du Pape - the cross-keys insignia on the bottle a reminder of the papal years in Avignon.

The Rhone valley has been used as highway for trade since time immemorial, and most historians agree that the first cultivation of vines in France was in this valley. Whoever those first growers were, it's certain that they would have had to contend with the same problems as today's growers. The Mistral, the wind which blows relentlessly through the valley, comes bitter cold from the north during the winter, and dry and searing during the summer. The vines need protection from its persistence, so often they are pruned and trained into low bushes, or they are protected by a belt of trees.

The climate is continental with cold winters and dry, hot summers, while the terrain varies from steep-sided plantings below Lyons to flat, stony plains around Avignon. Because of this and rainfall differences, the Rhone Valley produces every kind of wine; big, long-lived reds, fruity young quaffing wines, roses, dry whites, sparkling wines and rich, luscious dessert wines. The predominant grape varieties are Syrah, Mourvedre, Cinsault and Viognier - but especially in the south a wide variety of grape varieties is used depending on the varied terrain. Many of the wines are a blend of several grape varieties, Chateau Neuf du Pape can have up to a dozen. The range of wines available makes Rhone Valley wines fun to explore.

Wine of The Week.

Vacqueras Bouvencourt 1997

The town of Vacqueras, on the edge of the Gigondas appellation, makes consistently good 'Villages' reds. Deep-bodied, full in flavour and with a powerful bouquet, it's a good example of what red Rhones can offer.

Available McCabes and selected off-licenses. RRP. £10.99