Produce of a typical Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Roussanne and Viognier from vines averaging 30 to 60 years in age. Fermented and aged entirely in tank, the classic floral and pit fruit flavors and aromas of the Viognier are tempered by the crispness of Clairette and the creamy weight of Roussanne and Grenache Blanc. Bright lemon/platinum in color with aromas suggestive of peach, apricot and wine-soaked limestone; delicately glycerol with fine-grained pulverized rock-like underpinning that serves to refresh and cause some serious salivation. Mmmm.

Produce of about 60% Grenache and 40% Syrah fruit from vines planted to the limestone‑rich soils around the foothills of Mont Ventoux. These protected microclimates are warm during the day and cool at night. In addition, given their elevation, these sites are protected from stray summer storms that can devastate other parts of the Rhône valley. Here, the Grenache is slower to ripen due to the moderating influence of Mont Ventoux, lending greater complexity of aromas and flavor. Just translucent ruby in color with alluringly rich dark berry fruit complimented by a subtle hint of the garrigue and pulverized stone and a hint of cracked black pepper; both ample in body and refreshingly light on its feet, with dusty tannins delivering flavor long and fresh on the finish. Regularly $14.99 the bottle, on sale now at:

Produce of 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 10% Cinsault from vines averaging 40 years of age. Vivid ruby red with fuchsia reflections in color; aromas redolent of ripe red berries, dried cherries, cracked white pepper and a welcome whiff of la garrigue; silky smooth on entry, then building in body, demonstrating underpinning of firm pulverized stone‑like tannins that carry charged spicy/berry flavors onto the mouthwateringly fresh finish.

Produce of 75% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 5% Mourvèdre grapes hand‑harvested from vines averaging 60 years in age from vineyards near Châteauneuf‑du‑Pape in the southern Rhône Valley. Each cluster is carefully sorted and the grapes are entirely destemmed then chilled to 12°C to undergo a cold soaking, extracting as much fruit flavour and colour as possible. They are then put into stainless steel vats and undergo pigéage and a slow, temperature‑controlled fermentation for some 15 to 20 days, yielding more robust, round, persistent tannins and body. The wine is then aged in concrete vats for 12 to 15 months before bottling. Lovely translucent cherry skin red with aromas of pulverized stone, wild strawberry, cherry, rosemary, lavender and more; supple on entry, then expansive on the palate to a generous mouth‑filling medium‑full in body with fine dusty jittery ripe tannins keeping everything fresh and flavorful long on the finish.

The 2021 Châteauneuf-du-Pape aged for 15 months in a combination of new and old oak barriques, foudre and stainless steel tanks. It displays bright red fruit, garrigue, clove, cedar and marked wood-smoke aromas. Fitted with slightly unrefined tannins, fresh acidity balances this full-bodied 2021 made in a rather modern style. Drink 2025‑2036. Rated 89. ‑ Nicolas Greinacher, vinous.com April, 2023

From 30 hectares in the Coudoulet neighborhood of the southern Côtes‑du‑Rhône, located just east of and otherwise contiguous with the vineyard of Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf‑du‑Pape on the opposite (east) side of the A7 motorway and it's vineyard being on the same plateau of Molasse seabed covered by diluvial alpine deposits. These stones called «galets roulés» play a big, er, role, as it were — they famously take in the heat during the day and let it go slowly at night which gives the vines a good running start come springtime. Produce of a somewhat atypical southern Rhône Valley blend of 30% Grenache, 30% Mourvèdre (Famille Perrin tend to emphasize Mourvèdre a bit), 20% Syrah and 20% Cinsault; deep, vibrant, almost magenta/ruby in color with fresh and penetrating spice and dark berry‑inflected aromas along with underlying pulverized limestone‑like minerality and hints of the ever‑present garrigue; although from the cooler 2021 vintage, the wine retains a power and a density typical of Coudoulet; stony firm on entry with gentle powdery tannins demonstrating structure from the get go, then with intensity of flavor of taut Grenache and the more feral Mourvèdre, the blue fruit of Syrah along with the rounding, freshening qualities of the Cinsault; all in all, another sweet (if completely dry) success from Famille Perrin.

The 2020 Châteauneuf du Pape Les Hauts‑Lieux comes from a cooler, higher elevation parcel and also includes slightly more Mourvedre, both of which give this cuvée a more firm, structured profile, especially in its youth. Awesome red, blue, and black fruits as well as black licorice, liquid violet, and peppery garrigue define the bouquet, and it's full‑bodied, with a great mid‑palate, ripe tannins, and a salty, almost bloody character on the finish. It shows the more charming nature of the 2020 vintage yet still deserves 4‑5 years of bottle age and will have over two decades of longevity. Drink 2026‑2048. Rated 97. ‑ Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com November, 2022

Moving to the Chateauneuf du Papes from barrel, the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape Les Trois Sources comes from more sandy soils. In general, this cuvée is the closest in style to the Reserve release and offers a more opulent style compared to the more structured Les Hauts‑Lieux release. Gorgeous black and blue fruits, violets, black licorice, and sappy garrigue emerge on the nose, and it’s full‑bodied, with ultra‑fine tannins, no hard edges, and a great finish. Rated (94-96+). ‑ Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com November, 2021

Produce of 55% Grenache, 25% Syrah, 10% Carignan, 5% Cinsault and 5% Mourvèdre grown on 20 acres adjacent to the Châteauneuf‑du‑Pape vineyards of Domaine de La Janasse. This superb Côtes‑du‑Rhône has been a go‑to bottle for us for some years now: deep ruby red, with hints of garrigue and pulverized stone almost wholly subsumed by sun‑drenched, almost new-world ripe grapey aromas; rich, round, generous and powerful on the tongue, with ripe kirsch‑like Grenache flavors and fine chalky/stony ripe tannins building on the palate, giving shape and structure on to the warm and invigorating finish.

I was blown away by the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape Cuvee Chaupin, a 100% Grenache release that comes almost exclusively from the Chaupin lieu‑dit in the northern part of the appellation. It's never as inky‑hued or powerful as the Vieilles Vignes but always screams Grenache with its sexy, ripe, seamless, and remarkably elegant style. The 2020 offers a translucent ruby/purple hue as well as incredible aromatics of blackberries, black raspberries, peppery garrigue, herbes de Provence, and flowers, and it opens up nicely with time in the glass. Full‑bodied and concentrated on the palate, it has silky tannins, no hard edges, and a great finish. I finished my note with "a Grenache lover's dream." This is up with the finest vintages produced and will evolve for 15+ years. Drink 2022‑2038. Rated 99. - Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com November, 2022

Founded by Roger Marès in the 1960s, the Mas des Bressades is located in the Costières de Nîmes, in the southern Rhône Valley of France. It extends across 45 hectares to the north of the Camargue, where the vines are planted at an elevation of 70 meters on what the French call galets roulés or rolled pebbles (medium sized stones, really) rolled and rounded by glacial action and the great Rhône River. The name «Bressades» comes from the Provençal patois and, fittingly, means to rock. While the estate has long been cultivated with respect for nature and the soil, in 2017 Cyril Marès requested certification in organic farming. After three years of conversion, it is now official. Produce of an inspired south of France mingling of 50% Roussanne, 30% Grenache Blanc, 10% Marsanne and 10% Viognier, their Costières de Nîmes Blanc is a vivid pale platinum/yellow in color with aromas suggestive of white pepper, fresh salt sea breezes, cool green/gold berries and crisp cool melon blanc d'Antibe; both ample and bright with its mineral edge on keen display, mouthwateringly fresh and vibrant on the tongue and just oh so deliciously refreshing and quaffable.

Produce of 50% Grenache, 30% Syrah and 20% Cinsault from the typically stony soils of the Costières de Nîmes, a splendid somewhere between Châteauneuf-du-Pape and the Mediterranean Sea. Copper/pink with sunset orange reflections in color with discreet aromas that suggest a kiss of red berry, an underlying salt sea minerality and a touch more left to the imagination (Henry noted a blood orange-like citrus quality); at once, both ample and minerally crisp on the tongue with a bursting berry fruit and a saline mouthwateringness. And while we all agreed that, given its volume, this is a rosé wine most useful at the dinner table, its sheer saline refreshingness is simply undeniable, too.

Alluringly rich, dense, ruby/purple in color to fuchsia at the edges with beguiling perfumed aromas that suggest sun, sea, berry and stone along with a hint of cracked black pepper; deep-pitched, pulverized stone and spicy fleshy berry on the tongue, potent, generous; and while we might tend to compare this to its Rhône Valley neighbor Châteauneuf-du-Pape (less than an hour's drive to the northeast), this remains more upfront, juicy and pliant if still a stony/mineral, potent red wine.

The 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape is another winner from this team, and readers can’t go wrong here. Based on 75% Grenache, 10% each of Syrah and Mourvedre, with the balance Cinsault, it was partially destemmed and brought up all in foudre. This beauty just about jumps out of the glass with its Provençal aromatics of ripe cherries, ground pepper, saddle leather, garrigue, and spice. These carry to a medium to full-bodied wine that has the vintage’s charming, pure character front and center, yet still brings good mid-palate density and ripe tannins. Buy a case, count yourself lucky, and enjoy bottles any time over the coming 10-15 years. Drink 2022‑2037. Rated 95. - Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com November, 2022

Produce of 80% Grenache and 20% Syrah fruit organically/biodynamically farmed and hand-harvested from vines an average of 25 years old and planted to the garrigues and Helvetian sand and sandstone soils in the Mediterranean climes of the southern Rhône Valley near Vacqueyras. Winemaking is traditional, the fruit is completely destemmed, there is a light crushing of the berries and fermentation on natural indigenous grape yeasts, the wine is aged in cement for one winter, then bottled. Vibrant and glowing translucent ruby to fuchsia at the edges in color with exotic almost perfumed aromas suggestive of wild strawberry conserve and grape pomace (it is, of course, biodynamically farmed grapes) with maybe just a hint of reduction (almost like roasted coffee beans; Henry noted the scent of garrigue after a bit of time in the glass); silken smooth onto the palate, then fresh and crisp, almost crunchy in texture (crunchy red berries), with pulverized stone-like, chalky dry jittery tannins building, carrying at once delicate and vibrant flavors long and fresh on the finish. An amusement for the tastebuds, indeed.

Showing even better than when I tasted it last year, the 2019 Hermitage La Chapelle is another ripe, powerful, sexy, and full-bodied example of this cuvée that brings classic La Chapelle gamey darker fruits as well as smoked meats, chocolate, sandalwood, and peppery spice. Full-bodied on the palate, it has good concentration, lots of ripeness, polished tannins, and a great, great finish. As with the 2018, it's opened up beautifully on the palate since I tasted it at the domaine and is a ripe, expansive, pure, beautiful Hermitage. Rated 97. - Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com June, 2022

The 2018 Hermitage La Chapelle is a monster of a wine that brings tons of richness and depth while staying light on its feet and balanced. Lots of ripe red and blue fruits as well as flowers, smoked meat, licorice, and spice define the bouquet, and it's full-bodied, has a ripe, powerful, yet balanced mouthfeel, and a great finish. Given some previous showings of this wine, it was surprisingly accessible on this occasion, with a wealth of fruit, sweet tannins, and tons of character. It's a brilliant wine as well as a magical Hermitage. Rated 98. - Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com June, 2022

Opaque ruby. Displays powerful, highly perfumed aromas of black/blue fruit preserves, licorice, cola, baking spices and potpourri, along with an exotic suggestion of incense. Utterly stains the palate with intense blackberry, cherry, cassis, floral pastille and spicecake flavors that deliver a suave blend of weight and energy. Youthfully solid tannins add shape and grip to an extremely long, mineral- and floral-accented finish that shows outstanding clarity and dark fruit thrust. Drink 2028‑2040. Rated 96.  Josh Raynolds, vinous.com March, 2020

The 2017 Hermitage La Chapelle showed incredibly well and is a brilliant wine that's reminiscent of a richer, denser 2011. Loads of sun-kissed dark fruits, leather, graphite, and flowers, with ample spice and sandalwood nuances, give way to a full-bodied, pure, deep, multi-dimensional Hermitage that’s just about as good as it gets. The balance, length, and depth of this is something to behold, and while it unquestionably offers pleasure today, it has another 20-30 years of prime drinking ahead of it. Drink 2022‑2052. Rated 99. - Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com June, 2022

Saturated violet color. Intensely perfumed ripe black/blue fruits, violet candy, exotic spices and smoky minerals show fine definition and lift. Juicy and focused on the palate, offering deeply concentrated yet lively black raspberry, boysenberry, floral pastille and spicecake flavors and a late touch of licorice. Finishes smooth, sappy and extremely long, with chewy tannins lending shape and grip to resonating dark berry and floral notes. Drink 2026‑2038. Rated 95.  Josh Raynolds, vinous.com March, 2020