Rhone

Wine Advocate 90"The 2010 Cotes du Rhone Reserve (a blend of 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 10% Cinsault, with nearly 10,000 cases imported) is outstanding. Dense purple, with notes of roasted meats, black raspberries, blackberries, licorice and lavender, this wine is just terrific. Medium to

Rhone Report 91-93+"One of the top barrel samples, the 2011 Pierre Amadieu Vacqueyras La Grangeliére checks in as a blend of 80% Grenache and 20% Syrah that is aged 60% in tank, and 40% in 2-year-old barrels. Ripe, textured, and gorgeously rich, it offers up notions of bing cherry, licorice,

Rhone Report 94"Even better and my favorite of the whites, the spectacular 2011 Michel Gassier Costières-de-Nîmes Lou Coucardie Blanc is a blend of Roussanne, Grenache Blanc, and Viognier that is fermented and aged all in barrels. Smelling like a top Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc, it offers knockout

Wine Spectator 97"Contains some exotic fruit—blueberry paste, boysenberry and raspberry confiture, and pastis-soaked currant—but it's a brick house too, with Turkish coffee, bittersweet chocolate and lots of singed wood spice notes fanning out on the finish. A great spine allows the elements to

Rhone Report 92"Made from a blend of 85% Grenache and 15% Syrah, from 80+ year vines, that is aged for 6 months in concrete tank, the 2011 Michel Gassier Cercius is a lush, decadent offering that delivers loads of black raspberry and blackberry styled fruit that is intermixed with notions of

Rhone Report 91"Another great vintage for this cuvee, the 2011 Chateau Pesquie Cotes du Ventoux Terrasses, a blend of 70% Grenache and 30% Syrah aged all in tank and old foudre, offers up a perfumed bouquet of sweet red fruits, violets, licorice, sappy garrigue, and hints of minerality that flows

Robert Parker 90"Rated, but no tasting note given. Although these wines are normally reviewed by my colleagues David Schildknect in his Languedoc-Roussillon and Alsace reports and Lisa Perrotti-Brown in her reviews of Australian wines, I tasted them during my visit with Chapoutier, so I will

Robert Parker 95 "A candidate for wine of the vintage, the 2009 Châteauneuf-du-Pape (a tank-aged blend of 90% Grenache and the rest Mourvedre, Syrah and Cinsault from 80+ year old vines) is a naked expression of Châteauneuf-du-Pape that is pure fruit and complexity. Its dense purple color is

Wine Advocate 95" Made from an identical blend, the 2010 Chateauneuf du Pape is a hedonistic Chateauneuf du Pape fruit bomb. Super-rich with layers of glycerin and fruit, this full-bodied classic smells like a Provencal open-air fruit and vegetable market. Loaded with slightly blacker fruits than

Wine Spectator 91WS TOP 100 2012 Rank 58“Dense and layered, but very refined, with a violet note stitching the crushed black cherry, steeped blackberry and anise together, while an iron note adds range to the finish. Drink now through 2018.”

International Wine Cellar 88"Bright purple. Perfumed bouquet of framboise, fruitcake and baking spices. Plenty ripe but also energetic, with juicy red and dark berry flavors and a supple texture. Tannins build on the finish, which displays riper cherry and plum character. I'd serve this with rich

Wine Advocate 92-94" The 2010 Costieres de Nimes Chateau de Nages Lou Coucardie is somewhat of an experimental cuvee launched a few years ago by Michel Gassier and his consultant, Philippe Cambie. It is a selection of very old vines and is a blend of 60% Mourvedre, 30% Grenache and 10% Syrah. The

Wine Advocate 90"A brilliant offering is the 2009 Cotes du Rhone-Villages Seguret Les Pialons. Seguret is a top spot for quality, and this blend of 90% Grenache and the rest mostly Syrah and a little Mourvedre offers abundant aromas of ripe kirsch, lavender, dusty, loamy soil, pepper and spice. It

Wine Spectator 94"This cuts a nice path, with crème fraîche, green plum, pear and Jonagold apple flavors all woven together and offset by a flash of quinine on the finish. This should age well. The best vintage yet for a Vieux Télégraphe white."

"The Rosé, as you’ve tasted, have a nice appearance with a “light and fresh pink” colour and this very particularly “Campuget-fruity” taste of raspberries and strawberries with a good and refreshing acidity.To fully enjoy its aromatic and fruity character this wine should be drunk in the year

Wine Advocate 88"The 2010 Cotes du Rhone is excellent. It exhibits very good ripeness and lots of minerality along with floral, red and dark fruit notes."

Rhone Report 93"The 2010 Vacqueyras Le Clos has more Syrah in the mix and is made from 50% Grenache and 50% Syrah. Aged completely in vat (as are all of this estates wines), it is a gorgeous effort that reveals layers of black raspberry, blackberry, leather, licorice, and spice on the nose.

Wine Enthusiast 90"Full bodied and heavily extracted, this is a dark, plummy wine with almost chewy tannins on the finish. Yet the aromas remain fresh and floral, nicely accented by coffee and spice. Drink now2017 - J.C."Wine Spectator 88"This ripe red shows a slightly raisined edge to its

"A shining example of what is perfect about French rosé. This charming blend of a Grenache, Carignan, and Syrah has a beautiful soft pink color. The flavors remind you of walking through a garden in springtime, with its notes of strawberry and rhubarb. The finish is refreshing and dry accompanied by

"A blend of 50% Grenache, 40% Cinsault and 10% Syrah, this racy rosé has some serious weight on the palate. Vinified as a “vin de saignée,” a short maceration with a long fermentation under controlled temperatures is employed. This wine defines the word delicious! Cotes du Rhone." ~Winery Notes

Wine Enthusiast 88"This blend of 40% Clairette, 30% Grenache Blanc, 20% Viognier and 10% Roussanne offers up delicate lemony scents alongside hints of pineapple. It's a medium-bodied white, displaying freshness and finesse in its citrus, pear and melon flavors."~J.C.

Wine Advocate 88" Potentially outstanding, the 2010 Cotes du Rhone-Villages comes primarily from Grand Prebois as well as other vineyards in St.-Gervais, especially the Syrah component. A blend of 60% Grenache and 40% Syrah, it exhibits a dense ruby/purple hue along with deep blackberry and black

Empire Wine Best Buy"Briar, raspberry and mineral notes run through the juicy finish. Shows solid fruit, with a nice tug of earth. Drink now through 2007. 8,000 cases made. WS 89 on 2004 vintage"

Wine Spectator 91"Silky, with enticing dark currant, fig sauce and blackberry fruit flavors followed by intriguing black tea, black licorice snap and mineral notes and a long finish. Drink now through 2021. 4,750 cases made."Robert Parker 90"The outstanding 2007 Chateauneuf du Pape performed

Wine Advocate 90"The outstanding 2007 Chateauneuf du Pape performed even better from bottle than it did last year from barrel. A blend of 83% Grenache and the rest Syrah, Mourvedre, and Counoise aged completely in neutral wood foudres, it exhibits aromas of pepper, roasted Provencal herbs, meat