2012 Hermitage

Inky ruby. Sexy, highly perfumed scents of boysenberry, cola, Indian spices and potpourri are complemented by a smoky mineral quality. Smooth, expansive and alluringly sweet, showing a refreshingly light touch to its intense black and blue fruit and floral pastille flavors. Dusty, slow-building tannins add focus to the long, juicy, floral finish. There's lots going on here at this point but Yann Chave thinks that the wine will start shutting down soon. "You're lucky that you're trying it now because by March it will probably be closed down and stay that way for at least a few years," he said.

Lastly, the inky colored 2012 Hermitage competes with the 2009 and 2010 (and frankly, tastes like a hypothetical blend of the two) in terms of quality. Possessing terrific notes of crème de cassis, vanilla bean, toasted spice and classic Hermitage powdered-rock-like minerality, it’s medium to full-bodied, concentrated and textured, with building tannin and vibrant acidity that emerges on the finish. It shows textbook Hermitage character and will drink nicely for 10-15 years.

Syrah, 12 months in demi-muids. Loess. Dark glowing crimson. Smells of treacle toffee. Sweet, flattering start and then marked alcohol. Easy to like in the short term. (JR)