Charvin Chateauneuf-du-Pape 2017

“Brilliant magenta. An assertively perfumed bouquet of ripe red and blue fruits, Moroccan spices and incense carries a smoky overtone. Sweet, penetrating raspberry preserve, cherry, lavender pastille and spicecake flavors show impressive depth as well as vivacity. Displays superb clarity and floral thrust on the finish, which features smoothly interwoven tannins and lingering spiciness. This wine shows just how much complexity can be achieved, even in a hot vintage, in the absence of any oak, old or new. 94-95 points

Laurent Charvin has always kept things simple by working with mostly one variety, Grenache (usually around 85% of the final blend), and using only concrete tanks to raise his single bottling of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Longtime fans of this domaine, which owns just 10 hectares of Châteauneuf-du-Pape in the northern sector at the border with Orange, should be more than happy with the superb 2017 and 2016s here. But it should be noted that, due to the vintages’ weather no doubt, the fruit profiles in both years leans slightly darker and deeper than usual. That means more cherry than raspberry, but there’s still plenty of the Charvin floral and spice character that has won Laurent a host of fans around the world.”

Josh Raynolds, Vinous (12/19)