Northern Rhone Wines

wines

Memorable, complex, aromatic and explosively deep, with a mix of palo santo, dark chocolate, black olive, espresso and hazelnut butter. The pure fruit at the core is a mix of ripe huckleberry, boysenberry and wild blackberry, with dense but polished tannins. Savory notes of dried rosemary and sage, cigar box, dried apricot and sandalwood linger on the epic finish. Drink now through 2045. 289 cases imported. Wine Spectator | 98 WSOpaque, bright-rimmed ruby. Highly pungent, smoke- and mineral-accented aromas of cherry pit, violet candy, cured tobacco, savory herbs, coconut and exotic spices on the kaleidoscopic nose. Shows superb clarity and spicy lift to its spice-laced bitter cherry, cassis, blueberry and floral pastille flavors, which take on black cardamom, menthol and cola nuances as the wine slowly stretches out. Shows superb delineation and spicy thrust on the youthfully tannic finish, which features resonating cherry, blue fruit and floral notes.Vinous Media | 97 VMStrongly marked—as always—by its 100% American oak elevage, the 2017 Grange backs up the cedar and vanilla notes with ample blackberry and cassis fruit. Full-bodied, ripe and almost decadently creamy in the mouth, it’s loaded with substance, concentrated and rich, yet—in the context of Grange—relatively light and elegant-seeming on the finish. Only the seventh-ever Grange to be exclusively Shiraz, it originates from Barossa Valley (86%) and McLaren Vale (14%); Shiraz from other growing regions in South Australia failed to make the grade this year.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPSurprisingly approachable, the seamless meld of fresh red fruits, mocha and liquorice makes for an especially friendly and agreeable young Grange. A fabulous bouquet immediately draws you in – a meadow of wild herbs amid an orchard of plums – while the long palate shows impressive drive. Some spiky raw notes stick out at the end, along with assertive oak, showing that this vintage is still growing into its sturdy frame. Released at AU$950. Drinking Window 2025 - 2060.Decanter | 96 DECThis starts with a deeply spicy and brooding nose that packs plenty of (100% new) American oak, some smoked vanilla and ripe dark plums and berries. The palate has a youthful, astringent feel with sinewy oak tannin and deep plum and dark-berry flavors, carrying a big frame of fruit extract. Big, round berries strive towards boldness. A blend of Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale. 100% shiraz. Drink over the next two decades.James Suckling | 96 JS

One of the legendary vintages for this cuvée is the 2017 Côte Rôtie La Turque, a blend of 93% Syrah and 7% Viognier from a tiny parcel in the Côte Brune lieu-dit. Always aged 4 years in new French oak, it offers a dense, saturated purple color as well as slightly more masculine notes of blackberries, smoked meats, dark chocolate, and graphite. Full-bodied, beautifully concentrated, and perfectly balanced, with incredible purity of fruit, it already offers pleasure but will ideally be given 5-7 years of bottle age. It will deliver the goods for 30 to 40 years. It’s the star of the show in 2017 and one of the wines of the vintage.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDA common refrain regarding the La-Las is that they require a decade or more of cellaring to come around. In fact, they’re often quite open and appealing soon after release, only to close down shortly thereafter. The 2017 Cote Rotie La Turque offers up hints of crushed stone and struck flint, smoky, bacon-fat aromas and ripe, mouthwatering blackberries. Full-bodied, creamy and rich, it’s a powerful, concentrated effort that should still be drinking well in two decades.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97+ RPYou can almost smell the fresh clay, immediately a different register compared to La Mouline with star anise, incense notes and rolling tobacco as opposed to cigarette tobacco. Rounded, fuller and plumper with more mouthcoating tannins and touches of vanilla pod from the oak.. The fruit is sweeter and juicier than the Mouline and this has a long, sappy finish with plentiful tannin but still elegant. (Drink between 2024-2038)Decanter | 97 DECVery alluring, with silky waves of cherry puree and mulled plum fruit gliding through, infused gently with red tea, savory and sweet tapenade hints. Lingering minerality carries the finish, which has structure and grip to merit cellaring, though the fruit is so hard to resist.Wine Spectator | 96 WSExpansive aromas of black raspberry, cherry and boysenberry, with exotic spice, floral oil and incense notes building in the glass. Energetic and focused on the palate, offering densely packed black/blue fruit liqueur flavors, along with intense violet pastille and cracked pepper notes. The floral quality builds steadily with air and carries through a very long, chewy finish that features resonating blue fruit and floral notes and youthfully gripping tannins.Vinous Media | 95-96 VM

Bottled in February of 2021, the 2017 Côte Rôtie La Mouline is a seamless, exotic, perfumed, full-bodied effort that offers a classic floral character in its ripe black raspberry and blackberry fruit as well as notes of spice box, espresso, and chocolate. Co-fermented with roughly 10% Viognier, it’s all about gorgeous fruit and texture, and this cuvée has that rare ability to bring incredible richness and depth with no sensation of weight or heaviness. It needs 4-5 years of bottle age and will keep for 20-25 years. This reminds me slightly of the 2011 as well as the 2007.Jeb Dunnuck | 98 JD(E Guigal, La Turque, Syrah / Shiraz, Côte-Rôtie, Rhône, France, Red) You can almost smell the fresh clay, immediately a different register compared to La Mouline with star anise, incense notes and rolling tobacco as opposed to cigarette tobacco. Rounded, fuller and plumper with more mouthcoating tannins and touches of vanilla pod from the oak.. The fruit is sweeter and juicier than the Mouline and this has a long, sappy finish with plentiful tannin but still elegant. (Drink between 2024-2038)Decanter | 97 DECThe 2017 Cote Rotie La Mouline has developed quickly and is already approachable—although I wouldn’t be surprised to see it close down shortly, only to emerge even better a decade from now. Complex, charming scents of jasmine, sandalwood, raspberries and stone fruit appear on the nose, while the full-bodied palate is silky-textured, with a long, plush finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96+ RPHighly perfumed, expansive aromas of cherry and blueberry liqueur, incense, exotic spices and vanilla, plus a bright mineral overtone that builds in the glass. Youthful, palate-staining red and blue fruit flavors show superb depth as well as energy, and a core of juicy acidity adds support and back-end cut. Finishes with building floral and spice nuances, gentle tannic grip and a resonating mineral note.Vinous Media | 96-97 VM Racy-edged and still a bit coiled up, this has a core of dark cherry and currant fruit that has melded nicely with singed alder, tobacco and sanguine notes. Flashes of chocolate and espresso crema add a more taciturn edge to the finish, but time should bring that into the fold, as this has superior length and drive for cellaring.Wine Spectator | 96 WS