2016 Cotes du Rhone Vieilles Vignes

A blend of 50% Grenache, 40% Mourvèdre and the rest Cinsault and Syrah, the 2016 Côtes du Rhône Cuvée Vieilles Vignes offers a gorgeous bouquet of cassis, blueberries, lavender, cured meats, and graphite. It's deep, rich, medium to full-bodied, and has a great finish. The Mourvèdre keeps this tight and fresh, and I suspect it will age beautifully. Xavier Vignon is one of the top oenologists in the Southern Rhône and releases a bevy of outstanding wines under his own label.

The older vine cuvee of the estate is the 2016 Côtes du Rhône Vieilles Vignes and it is primarily Grenache blended with 15% each of Mourvèdre and Syrah. In this case, the Mourvèdre vines are 60 years in age and the Grenache vines are 45 years in age. Aged 12 months in 80% concrete tanks and 20% in barrel, its vibrant purple color gives way to a concentrated, medium to full-bodied 2016 that’s much more reserved and tight compared to the other Côtes du Rhône releases, yet offers beautiful purity in its blueberry and blackberry fruit, as well as subtle notes of violets, charcoal, and pepper. With integrated acidity and fine, polished tannin, this is a serious Côtes du Rhône that’s going to benefit from a year or two of bottle age and keep for a decade.