There are an impressive 4.5 million bottles of the 2016 Cotes du Rhone, a ripe, silky wine that should bring pleasure to thousands of consumers. Cherries and raspberries mark the nose, while the medium to full-bodied palate adds nuances of cola, tree bark...
2010 was a great vintage in Rioja in general and seems to be exceptional here, with a 2010 Viña Ardanza Selecci?n Especial (what used to be Reserva Especial) that can challenge any of the recent vintages and hopefully can develop in bottle to reach...
The 2016 Lirac Domaine du Clos de Sixte is a terrific wine, easily the rival to many Ch?teauneufs from across the river, starting with its alluring aromas of flowering garrigue and ripe cherries. A blend of 50% Grenache, 35% Syrah and 15% Mourv?dre, this ...
The full-bodied, richly concentrated 2017 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee Reservee is at an almost embryonic state of development. It boasts great purple fruit, bright, crunchy, fresh flavors, hints of garrigue and some chewy tannins. According to Laurence Fera...
Tasted out of multiple barrels, the 2022 Châteauneuf Du Pape looks to be a ripe, sexy wine with gorgeous red and blue fruit as well as notes of graphite, smoked meat, and violets. Rich, full-bodied, and concentrated on the palate, it has rock-solid underl...
A terrific vintage for this wine, which was bottled just a couple of weeks prior to my late June visit, the 2021 Cotes du Rhone Coudoulet de Beaucastel is a blend of 30% each Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah, plus 10% Cinsault. From a vineyard just outside t...
A blend of 30% Mourvèdre, 30% Syrah, 30% Grenache and 10% Cinsault, the 2022 Cotes du Rhone Coudoulet de Beaucastel exhales a delicate, perfumed bouquet of black cherries, spices, violets and spring flowers. It’s medium to full-bodied, enveloping and laye...