2013 Gigondas Le Poste

Tasting like a top flight Pinot Noir, the 2013 Gigondas Le Poste is the most polished, elegant and silky in the lineup. Coming from a terraced vineyard that lies just behind the estate (three of the terraces are planted to red varieties, one terrace is planted to Cinsault). Like all of the single vineyards here, it’s almost all Grenache, was fermented with 100% whole clusters, and aged twelve months in small Burgundy barrels. Offering up notions of black currants, river rock, underbrush and dried Provencal herbs, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a layered, seamless texture and beautifully polished tannin that emerge on the finish. Still relatively backwards and reserved, it needs 2-3 years of cellaring and will drink well for a decade after that.

Bright violet color. Explosive, lucid black raspberry and incense aromas are complicated by intense potpourri and star anise nuances. Spicy, focused and concentrated, offering sweet red and dark berry liqueur flavors and a touch of cola. Seamless, sappy and pure, with fine-grained tannins building slowly through a long floral finish.

Dark crimson. Very sweet start. Seems very distinctive (mainly 50-year-old Grenache, apparently) but it is certainly undemanding even if you do have to seek the fruit hard at the moment. Rather a lack of juice. (JR)