Looking much improved from my previous tasting, Bertrand Gonnet's 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape Lieu Dit les Combes showcases briary, herbal notes backed by black cherries, blackberries and blueberries. Full-bodied, rich and...

(92-94 points) The base Gigondas, the 2018 Gigondas Vieilles Vignes is a blend from both the La Louisiane and Pigière lieux-dits near the estate (due to the dismal yields, there’s no Souteyrade cuvée in 2018) and is 80%...

Deep magenta. A complex, intensely perfumed bouquet evokes black raspberry, kirsch and lavender, along with vibrant mineral and exotic spice flourishes. Incisive red and dark berry, bitter cherry and succulent herb...

(92-94 points) Deeper and more concentrated than the 2018, the 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape is as impressive as I can remember this cuvée ever being. Dark in hue, overflowing with dark fruit, full-bodied and velvety in...

The flagship from this great estate is the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape Boisrenard, which is based on 80% Grenache and small doses of 17 other varieties. This deeply hued beauty offers a stunning bouquet of blackberries...

Checking in as a blend of 65% Grenache, 15% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre, and the rest a handful of varieties, the 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape was brought up in a mix of foudre and older barrels. This deep ruby/purple-hued effort...

Domaine Pierre Usseglio was founded in 1948 by Francis Usseglio, who had left Italy to work in the Châteauneuf-du Pape vineyards. Today the domaine owns 39ha of vines, of which 24ha are devoted to the red Châteauneuf...

The same blend as the Juline cuvée (50/50 Grenache and Syrah), the 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape La Côte Ronde sports a dense purple color as well as a beautiful bouquet of red and blue fruits intermixed with plenty of violet...

A dark, winey style, with lots of fig, plum and blackberry paste flavors layered together, with sweet tobacco, licorice snap and warm earth accents filling in. Packed but defined, with a graphite spine through the finish...

Garrigue, pepper, black cherry and kirsch are impossible to ignore. Layers of sweet, supple, silky-textured, elegant fruits with an incredible sense of purity, this is a fabulous expression of Gigondas. The approximate...

This is ripe, juicy and mouthfilling, with lots of enticing raspberry, boysenberry and fig compote flavors enlivened with anise, fruitcake and mulling spice accents. Shows good energy through the finish. Grenache, Syrah...

(91-93+ points)A step up, with more depth and density, the 2018 Rasteau Les Argiles Bleues is a blend of 80% Grenache and 20% Syrah that was brought up in foudre. Incredibly pure notes of cassis, black raspberries, new...

The 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape les Origines is rich and intense, a full-bodied, velvety wine with wow-level concentration. Blackberries and plums line the palate, finishing long, with hints of salted licorice. As usual...

(96+ points) More cassis, morello cherry, Asian spice, and a beautiful sense of minerality and loamy earth emerge from the 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Les Trois Sources, a full-bodied, concentrated blend of 60% Grenache, 15%...

Very alluring, with linzer torte and plum cake notes pumping through, flecked liberally with anise and mesquite accents along the way. A nice red licorice strip adds contrast on the finish, with its sappy edge, while a...

Deep, spicy and fragrant, this is a very concentrated and elegant Chateauneuf-du-Pape with remarkably fine tannins and floral delicacy alongside its earthy primacy. Mainly produced from grenache vines planted in 1901 and...

(96+ points) The 2015 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve des Deux Freres is more backward and structured, yet offers serious amounts of darker fruits, currants, smoked herbs, roasted meats and licorice aromas and flavors. Like...

Brandy-soaked black cherries and crushes of basalt introduce this intensely fruity but peppery, salt-rimmed red. A blend of 85% Grenache, 10% Syrah and 5% Mourvèdre, it's concentrated but maintains a mineral freshness and...

I am loving all the perfectly ripe Mourvedre here as it imparts such a cool, peppery, meaty, full-bodied quality to the layers of plums, kirsch, black raspberries and cherries. The wine is dark, deep, opulent and rich, as...

(90-92 points) There are two Rasteau from this reference point Châteauneuf du Pape producer. Starting with the 2019 Rasteau, it has plenty of chocolatey black raspberry and cherry fruits as well as loads of minerality...

A much more powerful wine based on 60% Grenache and 40% Mourvedre, the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape Deus-Ex Machina reminds me slightly of the 2011 with its spicy, perfumed, complex bouquet of red and black fruits, dried...

The classic 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape is a blend of 70% Grenache, 10% each of Syrah and Mourvèdre, and the rest a mix of varieties, raised two years in foudre. Gorgeous and incredibly Provençal notes of ripe cherries...

(90-92 points) In addition to their brilliant Chateauneuf du Papes, this estate makes two terrific Rasteau. Their 2018 Rasteau offers a medium to full-bodied, fruit-forward, balanced style as well as the more blue fruit...

Showing more finesse and elegance than the Pignan, yet still with plenty of density and concentration, the 2010 Châteauneuf Du Pape Reserve is a sensational effort from this estate that has a kaleidoscope-like array of...

Lastly, the 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Reserve is another magical wine, and I might have rated this cuvée a perfect score more than any other Southern Rhône. Unquestionably in the same realm as the 2017, 2016, 2010, 2005...

I loved the 2019 Gigondas Les Hautes Garrigues, one of the finest vintages of this cuvée under the helm of Benjamin Gras. Medium ruby-hued, with gorgeous meaty, peppery, Provençal aromatics, it needs plenty of air, and...

Up with the crème de la crème of the vintage, the 2018 Châteauneuf Du Pape Vieilles Vignes is a bigger, richer wine than the Les Origines cuvée and has a beautiful core of smoked black fruits, candied violets, peppery...

A rich, mouthfilling effort, Vieux Donjon's 2018 Chateauneuf du Pape is concentrated and velvety, showing plenty of power and weight. Ripe cherries and raspberries are dusted with clove and star anise, then joined by...

Deep brilliant crimson. An expansively perfumed, expressive bouquet evokes ripe cherry and raspberry, incense, lavender and Moroccan spices, and a smoky mineral flourish adds urgency and lift. Shows impressive depth as...

The saturated purple-hued 2017 Châteauneuf Du Pape Cuvée De La Reine Des Bois is another brilliant wine from this estate. Made from 80% Grenache, 10% Mourvèdre, and 5% Syrah and Vaccarèse (as well as a few other...