Brilliant ruby. Spice-accented aromas of ripe red fruits, candied flowers, earth and smoky minerals; a zesty white pepper quality emerges with aeration. Sweet, expansive and energetic on the palate, offering intense raspberry, spicecake and lavender flavors and a subtle touch of smoke. Completely stains the palate and shows outstanding clarity on the strikingly long, focused finish, where smooth tannins make a late appearance. Rated (93-95). - Josh Raynolds, vinouS.com, December, 2016.

Bottled in late July, the 2015 Chateauneuf du Pape is an amazing effort, especially when one considers the production volume. Loaded with black cherry fruit and cola-like spice, this full-bodied, richly textured wine never seems heavy or warm, while exotic Indian spice notes linger on the finish. It should drink well for at least 20 years. Rated 96. - Joe Czerwinski, The Wine Advocate, Issue 233, October, 2017.

Produce of 40% Grenache, 30% Mourvèdre, 20% Syrah, 10% Cinsault from 30 hectares in the Coudoulet neighborhood of the Côtes du Rhône, located just east of the vineyard of Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf du Pape on the opposite side of the A7 motorway. Coudoulet is often referred to as baby Beaucastel - it's vineyard is similar being the same Molasse seabed covered by diluvial alpine deposits. These pebbles called «galets roulés» play a big role: they famously take in the heat during the day and let it if off slowly at night which gives a good start to the vines in the spring. Dark ripe berry, with a trace hint of garrigue submerged beneath the solar vintage ripeness and roundness and overall amplitude; generous and then, somehow, firm on the palate in evidence of its stoney origins in close proximity to Châteauneuf-du-Pape itself «laissez les galets rouler». And while this smacks of a Côtes-du-Rhône that should age nicely, we might humbly suggest this one is just too delicious not to pull the cork on the spot and even with some frequency.

Produce of fruit from three vineyard sites, Le Méal with loose alluvial soils with a prevalence of glacial stones, Les Murets more granitic soils with similar alluvial deposits and its namesake Chante-Alouette with loess soils with a fine layer of clay and limestone. The fruit is hand-harvested and fermented partly in 600-litre demi-muid, partly in vat at controlled temperatures with regular stirring of the lees. Typically stately Marsanne aromatics save this up-front toasty, yeasty quality which just melts into more discreet hints of honey-laden beeswax and freshly rain-soaked straw (Philipp noted fig and hazelnut, then honeysuckle and lime); extravagant on entry, rich, slippery smooth and emollient on the tongue (the wonderful tactile qualities of this wine should not be understated), sumptuous even, yet with nerve and spine and an ever so satisfying nature to its core; one might reasonably deduce that Hermitage Blanc such as this is white wine with a certain preeminence.

This small château is located near the town of Saint-Gilles just west of the Rhône River some 5 miles from the Mediterranean Sea. It is owned an operated by the Cornut family — Sylvia is the oenologist, with her husband François and their two sons tending to the vineyards. The rocky soils here are reminiscent of Châteauneuf-du-Pape and the fruit is always picked late, ensuring deep and profound wines with soft tannins. François is meticulous in his viticultural practices and is a believer in sustainable agriculture, using no synthetic herbicides, pesticides or fertilizers on any of his vineyards or crops. Sylvia and the boys take over in the winery (the boys work a lot) where she ferments all fruit separately in stainless steel tanks by varietal and by vineyard site. This 2016 Château Guiot Costières de Nîmes is a blend of hand-harvested Grenache and Syrah fruit; very primary aromas of fleshy ripe grapes and grape pomace with suggestion of blue plum, kirsch and a good healthy winegrowing earth; just full and fruity and round on the tongue with nice crisp bright acids and supple tannins lending the gentlest astringency and keeping things refreshing and vibrant to the long and flavorful finish.