
2019
Region
France › Rhône › Northern Rhône › Crozes-Hermitage › Crozes-Hermitage AOC
Type
red · still
Grapes
Syrah
Alcohol
13.9%
Volume
750 mL
VA isn't loud here, but the smoke is - and that's the whole personality. Smoked taranka opens it, then tar, melted plastic, ground peppers, semi-dried blackberry layered behind. Cool, complex, the kind of aromatic register that takes a few minutes to map. Still charged on the palate, the tannin reading green - this one isn't fully resolved yet - but the acidity is sharp and class, and a touch of sweetness on the finish carries the structure through. A wine that rewards attention rather than the easy first sip.
Same cuvée as the 2018 - whole-cluster Syrah from Larnage on red clay, gravel and alluvial stones with some granite, fermented in large wooden vats, aged in old 600-litre demi-muids, bottled without filtration. 2019 was another hot Northern Rhône year but more structured and tannic than 2018 - the denser, more layered expression of the cuvée, built for longer ageing while keeping the estate's freshness signature.