2015 St Joseph

There are two Saint Joseph releases in 2015, and Jean-Louis finally decided to bottle his Le Clos cuvée separately. Hats off to him as both wines are up with the crème de la crème of the appellation. Looking at the classic 2015 Saint Joseph, this beauty offers loads of kirsch, currants, and blackberry fruits intermixed with more smoked meats, cedar, and minerality. It’s a rich, powerful, mineral-laced Saint Joseph to drink over the coming 10-15 years. The reference point for traditional, classic Hermitage must be that of the Chave family, whose history with this region goes back over 500 years. The estate is located in the tiny village of Mauves, and they pull from some of the prime terroirs on Hermitage Hill, including Bessards, Hermite, Péleat, les Rocoules, and Beaumes. In addition to producing one of the best Hermitages out there (Red and White), Jean-Louis Chave has also invested an incredible amount of time, energy and money into his vineyards in Saint Joseph over the past decade or more. Today he releases a classic estate Saint Joseph as well as a new single vineyard cuvée from an ancient site located south of Mauves called Le Clos. This was previously known as Domaine Florentin and has an incredible amount of history associated with the estate, which was purchased by the Chave family in 2009. I expect it won’t be long before we see another single vineyard Saint Joseph from his vines in Beshesson, located north of Saint-Jean-de-Muzols. Looking at the vintages reviewed here, the 2015s certainly rival what the estate produced in 2009 and 2010, with a style not too dissimilar from a hypothetical blend of 2009 and 2010. These are ripe, exuberant wines, yet trust me, they have plenty of tannin, depth and length, and will be long-lived. The 2016s, which were brought up completely in the new cellar, are much more streamlined, tight, and fresh. They’re classic, elegant wines. but my money is on them needing plenty of cellaring to be approachable.

The 2015 Saint Joseph has some delicate florals but is marked more by ripeness and power. Dark fruit, black olive and even some tarry notes feature prominently in this medium to full-bodied wine that’s supple, spicy and long on the finish.

Tasted from barrels, vineyard by vineyard. 1) from Clos Florentin: High-pitched red fruit and floral character, with juicy acidity and a late mineral flourish. 2) from Le Croissant, in Clos Florentin: Deeper and darker fruits, showing intense violet and licorice notes along with olive, game and smoky mineral qualities on the back half. 3) from Chaillets: Mineral-accented cherry and blackberry qualities are sharpened by a peppery flourish. Concentrated but lithe, displaying excellent focus and chewy texture. 4) from Baschasson: Intense dark fruit scents and flavors; smoky mineral and spice notes add vivacity. Rich yet urgent as well. The final wine will be one of the best examples of this bottling yet, I'll wager, delivering serious depth and flavor intensity but energy as well. I suspect that it will match up favorably with plenty of Hermitages from the vintage.