Basically, think of the Rhone in two parts. The northern area, where the Syrah grape is the workhorse variety and often co-fermented with Viognier (see last months notes) to produce notably rich and spicy wines. The Southern Rhone allows over 27 different grapes that are blended together to made a variety of wine styles.
Compare and Contrast
In this case I have selected a wine from the most famous village, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, which is also the largest. Here, up to nineteen different grape varieties can be used (ten red and nine white). Grenache usually makes up the biggest proportion of the the blend, but producers here tend to use a higher percentage of Mourvèdre in the final blend.
Just on the other side of the River Rhone is the smaller village of Vacqueyras. Here Grenache is also the stable grape with some producers blending in more Syrah whiich makes this wine a little more spicy by contrast.
Please try these two styles and let us know what you think. Either way both wines are a great choice for Christmas.