2016 St Joseph Les Granits

The 2016 Saint Joseph Les Granits comes from the Saint Joseph lieu-dit just south of Tournon and was destemmed and brought up in a mix of 25% new demi-muids and Burgundy barrels. Just screaming granite on the nose with its black raspberry, crushed rocks, white pepper, gunpowder, and exotic spices, this beauty hits the palate with full body, ripe, present tannins, beautiful acidity, and an undeniable minerality. Despite all its upfront fruit and texture, it has rock solid structure and will age for two decades. The estate of firebrand Michel Chapoutier continues to operate on all cylinders, and these latest 2016 and 2017 releases are world class for this address. The 2017 whites show the gradual change toward a more reductive style of winemaking, and the wines at times have an almost Burgundian feel in their minerality, acidity, and texture. Nevertheless, they’re fabulously concentrated and rich and will need 2-4 years of cellaring. The 2016 whites showed beautifully, and I prefer those to the 2017s. The majority of the 2017 reds were tasted as barrel samples. This is a ripe, sexy, expressive vintage for the Northern Rhône, and this shows in the wines. The 2017s don’t appear to have the density of the more blockbuster styled 2015s, yet they have expressive, sunny characters that will deliver loads of charm. The 2016s having slightly more density and cooler-climate styled aromatics, yet are nevertheless some of the richest, sexiest wines in the vintage. In addition to the frightfully expensive top-tier cuvées, don’t miss the value releases from this estate. These wines max out the QPR scale and are great introductions into the wines of Chapoutier as well as the Rhône Valley.

Grown on the east-facing portion of Tournon's lieu-dit Saint-Joseph, the 2016 Saint-Joseph Les Granits is an expressive and wild blend of espresso, black olive, crushed stone and grilled meat. Medium to full-bodied, it's saline and savory, with a rich, silky-textured finish that lingers on the palate. Really impressive stuff.

Saturated ruby. Powerful, mineral-accented blue fruits, pungent flowers, incense and a hint of licorice on the highly perfumed nose. Smooth, sweet and expansive in the mouth, offering intense boysenberry and spicecake flavors and a candied violet nuance that gains power as the wine opens up. A smoky mineral nuance emerges on the impressively long finish, which features supple tannins and resonating florality.