2016 Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes

Ruby with ink in its hue, the wine is off the charts in the terms of concentration. Dense, mouth filling, long and intense, the wine coats every nook and cranny of your palate with layers of juicy, dark red fruits, spice, pepper and jam. The texture is akin to velvet. The fruit filled finish, with all its peppery goodness does not quit. The wine was made from blending 50% Grenache, 40% Mourvedre and 10% Syrah.

The 2016 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Vieilles Vignes is up with the crème de la crème of the vintage and in the same league as the perfect 2010. Awesome notes of blackberries, crème de cassis, charred meats, licorice, and violets all soar from the glass. It's powerful, opulent, and structured, with building tannin, a huge mid-palate, and a blockbuster finish, yet it never loses its sense of purity and elegance. It's an incredible achievement from this estate. The blend is 45% Grenache, 45% Mourvèdre, and 10% Syrah, all aged in 55% new French oak.

Lurid violet. A highly complex bouquet evokes ripe red and blue fruits, incense, vanilla and exotic spices, and a floral accent builds steadily as the wine opens up. Sweet and expansive on the palate, offering deeply concentrated black raspberry, boysenberry, cola and spicecake flavors that are energized and given spine by a core of juicy acidity. Shows outstanding clarity and fruity thrust on a long, sweet finish framed by smooth tannins.