Rhône Roots is a travel and events company dedicated to celebrating the best of the Rhône Valley, owned by Rhône expert Matt Walls.

Rhône Roots Events

The first Rhône Roots tasting event in London was in April 2025, and it was a sell-out success, hosting 40 of the very best wine producers from the region and a selection of exceptional Rhône-inspired winemakers from around the world. It attracted names such as Château de Beaucastel, Château de Saint Cosme, Domaine de la Mordorée, François Villard, Pierre-Jean Villa, Chapoutier, Gramenon, Torbreck, Richard Kershaw… The second edition will take place on Wednesday 28^th April 2027.

2027 Rhône Roots Tour: Sunday 27th June to Friday 2nd July 

Our first trip to the Rhône Valley took place in June 2026 and was a blast! Applications for 2027 are now open. You’ll visit some of the best winemakers in the region, eat at some of Matt’s favourite restaurants, and he’ll be there in person to tell you all about this beautiful, soulful place and its incredible wines. Here is the itinerary in full:

Sunday 27th June – an evening in Lyon

Make your way to bright, modern 4-star Hôtel Globe et Cecil in the heart of Lyon’s Presqu’île, just off Place Bellecour, where the tour commences.

We’ll meet in the hotel lounge for an introductory drink, then walk over to Armada in Vieux Lyon, a vibrant, informal restaurant with original and inventive small plates to share.

Monday 28th June – Côte-Rôtie and Condrieu

In the morning, we’ll drive via the vineyards of Côte-Rôtie and Condrieu on our way to visit to Pierre-Jean Villa, one of the greatest local winemakers and viticulturalists of his generation. He makes wines across the Northern Rhône so we’ll kick off by comparing and contrasting different appellations.

After lunch at Restaurant Les Gagères, with breathtaking views over the vineyards of Côte-Rôtie, it’s a short drive to Condrieu to visit Domaine Xavier Gérard. Xavier is still flying under the radar, but he will soon be widely recognised as one of the most talented winemakers in the Northern Rhône – get to know him before everybody else!

Afterwards, we’ll drive to Tournon, check in to 4-star Hôtel de la Villeon and take some time to explore their terraced gardens and swimming pool with views of the hill of Hermitage before meeting for dinner. We’re going to Le Tournesol, a welcoming restaurant just near the river where chef Cyril has a deep understanding of local cuisine. His wife Hea keeps an impressive cellar!

Tuesday 29th June – Cornas, Crozes-Hermitage and Hermitage

We’ll start the day with a trip to Cornas where we’ll meet Lionel Fraisse, who runs Domaine Alain Voge. We’ll take a walk through the vineyards then back to the winery for a tasting of their excellent Cornas and Saint-Pérays, exceptional wines that walk the line between tradition and modernity.

Lunch is at the Auberge de Crussol in Saint-Péray, where they cook over live fire and we’ll eat together under plane trees overlooking the vineyards.

After lunch, we’ll drive to Tain l’Hermitage to visit Domaine Sorrel. It’s one of the few family-owned, artisanal Hermitage houses, and owner and winemaker Guillaume Sorrel will show us barrel samples of his 2026 red and white Crozes and Hermitage and tell us all about this magnificent terroir.

No activity or dinner is booked this evening, but suggestions can happily be provided. There are several highly recommended restaurants in walking distance of the hotel.

Wednesday 30th June – Gigondas and Cairanne

We’ll be getting up a bit earlier today (but not too early!) to drive to the Southern Rhône. We’ll start the day with a visit to Gigondas, one of the most picturesque villages of the Vaucluse, where we’ll be meeting Jean-Baptiste and Zoe Meunier of Moulin de la Gardette. They produce a particularly fine and drinkable style.

Zoe will organise a picnic in the vineyards where we will share some local salami, cheese, bread and fruit (not to mention some older vintages…) together under the shade of the pine trees, with the singing of the cicadas all around.

After a brief stroll around the village, we’ll drive over to Cairanne to visit Domaine Richaud. The great Marcel Richaud has stepped back now and handed over the reins to his son Thomas and daughter Claire. They produce some of the most vibrant and expressive wines in the Southern Rhône.

From here, we’ll drive to Avignon where we’re staying at the 5-star Hotel d’Europe, one of the oldest hotels in France. Dinner is at La Fourchette, an elegant and comfortable restaurant where the kitchen produces traditional dishes with the best local ingredients.

Thursday 1st July – Tavel and Châteauneuf-du-Pape

After breakfast, we’ll make our way across the river to Tavel, the Rhône’s only 100% rosé appellation – and, along with Châteauneuf-du-Pape, one of the first five appellations d’origine contrôlées of France. Château d’Aqueria is the leading traditional Tavel estate, and it was recently bought by Guigal. We’ll meet Guigal’s head winemaker in Southern Rhône, Ralph Garcin, who’ll tell us all about this historic estate and the local terroir.

Lunch will be at Café de France; it might have an unprepossessing name, but expect Corsican chef Christophe Bolis to cook up a storm – this is where the winemakers eat. He has one of the most exciting wine lists in the region.

After lunch, it’s a short hop to Le Clos du Caillou, home to some of the most elegant wines of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Owner Marilou Vacheron will show us around her vineyards and unusual cellars and talk us through her range of wines.

This evening, we’ll eat at the best restaurant in Avignon, the Michelin-starred Pollen.

Friday 2nd July – more Châteauneuf!

After checking out, we’ll visit Domaine de la Solitude in Châteauneuf-du-Pape. One of the first estates in the appellation to label and export their wines, this is an ancient estate with exceptional galets roulés vineyards. Today it’s owned by Florent Lançon, who will personally welcome us and guide us through his wines, including his rare Vin de la Solitude.

We’ll have a final lunch together at La Mère Germaine, a historic Châteauneuf address with ambitious new owners, before the minibus drops us off at Avignon TGV station and we go our separate ways.

Your trip includes:

• Breakfast and lunch every day from Monday to Friday inclusive.
• Dinner every day from Sunday to Thursday inclusive except Tuesday.
• Travel by chauffeur-driven, air-conditioned minibus with complementary, chilled bottled water.
• You’ll be accompanied by Rhône expert Matt Walls every day of the trip.
• Fee includes welcome drink, included meals, coach travel, hotels, taxes and gratuities.

Maximum 12 guests.

The cost is £6,200 per person (sharing twin / double room), with a single room supplement of £700.

For more information or to apply, email us now at mw@mattwalls.co.uk

Here are some comments from previous guests:

“The Rhône Roots Tour 2026 was just brilliant. We tasted about 100 wines covering all the major, and some of the obscure, Rhône regions. Tastings included new and old vintages, rarities and barrel samples. We were privileged to learn so much from Matt Walls about Rhône wines and, thanks to his unparalleled reputation in the region, we spent quality time with many inspirational vignerons. Amazing stuff – I hope to do it again.”
Paul N, Perth

“Just finished my second Rhône tour with Matt. His tours always run perfectly; he has a talent for knowing and selecting smaller, high-quality, ‘under-the-radar’ family-run producers. Great choice of restaurants and meals paired with many extraordinary wines.”
Rob Fowler, London

“I have visited the Rhone many times and this was by far the best tour. The distinguishing factor is Matt’s knowledge of the region and his relationship with the producers which allows for in depth and informative visits. As a bonus the restaurants and wine selection were both top notch. Highly recommended.”
Gary M., Vancouver