2012 Cotes du Roussillon Bila Haut Occultum Lapidem
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The 2012 Cotes du Roussillon Villages Latour de France Occultum Lapidem offers dark, mineral-laced aromas and flavors of smoked earth, licorice, wild herbs and blackcurrants to go with a firm, structured and age-worthy profile on the palate. Comprised of mostly Syrah, from schist and gneiss soils, and aged in tank and demi-muid, this superb 2012 has solid mid-palate depth, ample tannin and a beautifully focused finish. It’s a superb value that will be even better in another year or so, and have 12-15 years of ultimate longevity. Any project Michel Chapoutier is involved with seems to excel, and his Roussillon Bila Haut domaine is no exception. With vineyards around the villages of Latour de France and Lesquerde, this estate releases five reds; the entry level Les Vignes de Bila Haut, which comes from a number of vineyards (and is a screaming value); the L’Esquerde, mostly Syrah from the higher elevation, granite soils around the village of Lesquerde; the Occultum Lapidem, which is made from Syrah, Grenache and Carignan from around the village of Latour de France; and his two single vineyard releases, the VIT from Latour de France and the RI from Lesquerde. These last two get close to the pinnacle of Syrah, and will stand toe to toe with the greatest Syrahs from the northern Rhone and California. Unfortunately, they’re only produced in minuscule quantities, but don’t miss a chance to grab some if you can. While the 2011s are stronger than the 2012s, I was able to taste the 2012s twice, once last year, in October during my trip through the northern Rhone, and then again from bottle in January at the domaine in the Roussillon. They showed even better from bottle, and these ratings may be conservative as I think these wines will continue to improve. We started out with the Marius wines, which are value-priced and deliver solid character. The Agly Brothers is imported by Old Bridge Cellars, Napa, CA; tel. (800) 622-2234; all other wines by: H. B. Wine Merchants, New York, NY; tel. (917) 402-0456
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Jeb Dunnuck, Wine Advocate
David Schildknecht, Wine Advocate
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From Syrah, Grenache, and Carignan in a mixture of gneiss, schist, and chalk, and vinified half each in tank and barrel (demi-muids as well as barriques), the 2012 Cotes du Roussillon Villages Latour de France Occultum Lapidem was bottled already in April – a month earlier than usual – and shortly before I tasted it, after having been assembled in tank already in January. Ripe, tart-edged and pit-inflected cherry and black raspberry with the crunch of its seed are prominent in the juicy and invigorating performance of this finely-grained cuvee, with pleasantly bitter hints of red chard and nibbles of black pepper adding to the stimulation of a long finish that seems stone-lined and teetering on the edge of dark mystery. The paradoxical sense of brightness and sinister depth of flavor here reminds me of certain fine red Burgundies, and with alcohol of only 14% this is certainly not in the least heavy-laden let alone hot or harsh. I suspect there will be yet more for which to praise it in a few years and that it will prove worth following through 2025. Michel Chapoutier’s Roussillon domaine – for further details on which, consult my report in issue 183 – has garnered well-earned praise as a beacon of Roussillon quality, and while the recent dismissal of this estate’s original winemaker, Gilles Troullier, can scarcely have left either the affected parties or any lovers of wine happy, I suspect that Chapoutier will find a way to maintain Bila-Haut’s position near the apex of regional quality. (For more about this change, and an account of Troullier’s own domaine wines, see under his name in this report.) The 2012 hail that afflicted Maury also ravaged Lesquerde, reducing total production volume at Bila-Haut significantly; and this scourge – along with the generally vine-stressful ripening pattern of the vintage – also influenced the percentage of Syrah (higher) and the quality of tannin (lower) in Chapoutier’s reds. But then, it’s almost unfair to those Bila-Haut 2012 reds to have to be tasted alongside their 2011 counterparts, which offer amazing quality and value even by the quite remarkable standards set at this estate. As for Bila-Haut’s “little” white from 2012, that wine is in a class by itself – how did they do it?! (In addition to the collaboration with Jasper Hill owner-vintner Ron Laughton of Victoria, Australia that is Agly Brothers – whose latest releases are reviewed in this report – Chapoutier has once again rendered Banyuls under his own name and is also bottling inexpensive wines sourced in part from Roussillon under the label “Marius,” releases reviewed in this report under those names.) Importer: H. B. Wine Merchants, New York, NY; tel. (917) 402-0456