Only produced in top vintages (this is the first since 2012), the 2015 Cornas Vieilles Fontaines comes from 80-year-old vines within the La Fontaine lieu-dit. It's a tough wine to evaluate at this stage, as it's quite... Read More
The 2003 Clos des Papes Chateauneuf du Pape (the # 2 wine in the Wine Spectator's annual winefest) has long been one of the most profound wines of the vintage. It somehow manages to offer the vintage's character in power,... Read More
The star of the show is the 2012 Hermitage Les Bessards. Coming from the pure granite soils of the Les Bessards lieu-dit, on the western edge of the appellation, it's made from 100% Syrah and spent 16 months in 70% new French... Read More
Concentrated as well as aromatic, the 2001 Cote Rotie offers up scents of wild game, roasted meats, animal fur, berry fruit, and mountain flowers. Full-bodied, thick, concentrated, and tannic, it cuts a broad swath across the... Read More
From a low-yield, hot-summer vintage, this full-bodied Syrah is still very young and tough, with a plummy, ripe character, chalk, mineral and leather notes and excellent concentration. The tannins are beginning to integrate nicely,... Read More
What a great wine. Full-bodied, with crushed berry, smoke and grilled aromas, all presented quite subtly. Stands out for its natural, down-to-earth taste of clean, pure, shining fruit. A pleasure to drink. Tempting now. Best from... Read More
From a vintage that produced classic, structured and focused reds, the 1995 Côte Rôtie Côte Blonde came from miniscule yields of 18 hectoliters and offers a gorgeous bouquet of sweet dark fruits, tobacco leaf, olive tapenade and... Read More
The 2009 Châteauneuf du Pape Le Petit Livre d'Anna M. Bach is scheduled to be bottled this September, after five years aging on lees in demi-muid. It too is 100% Grenache from the Pignan lieu-dit and vines planted in 1942.... Read More
We finished the tasting with the inky-purple 2012 Châteauneuf du Pape. A cellar selection by Manfred Krankl (of Sine Qua Non) of mostly Mourvedre, yet with a splash of Grenache and even some white varieties, it was aged in two... Read More