2011 St Joseph Lieu Dit St Joseph

Also impressive and with surprising depth and concentration in the vintage, the 2011 St.-Joseph Lieu-Dit St.-Joseph offers gorgeous cassis, black raspberry, licorice and charred earth in its medium-bodied, elegant, pure and focused personality. It too will have another decade of longevity. Across the board, this is a superb lineup of wines that delivers high quality at all price points. Run by the team at Chapoutier, headed by Pierre-Henri Morel, the wines are made by Damien Brisset. This was a large tasting and I've simply listed the wines in the order we went through them. Within a vintage, the wines are broken up into three categories, the traditional releases, the Lieu-Dit releases, and the selections parcellaires releases. The 2011s are slightly softer and more streamlined than the 2012s. As a whole, they offer charming, supple and more medium-bodied profiles that will reward earlier drinking. Looking at the traditional releases in 2011, these wines show classic, yet approachable and delicious characters. In most cases they represent good value. Importer: A French Paradox, Peoria, IL; tel. (309) 682-8994

Youthful purple. Deep, smoky aromas of dark fruit preserves, pipe tobacco and violet, with a suave mineral overtone. Fleshy blackberry and blueberry flavors are energized by bright Asian spice and cracked pepper elements. Finishes on a sweet note of candied dark berries, with excellent clarity and lingering minerality.