J.L. Chave Selection Saint-Joseph Offerus 2019

“Full violet color. Heady, spice-accented dark berry, cola and floral pastille scents show excellent clarity and pick up a mineral nuance with aeration. Juicy and expansive on the palate, offering bitter cherry, blueberry and olive paste flavors that are given spine by a core of juicy acidity. Finishes gently sweet, broad and very long, with an echo of candied violet and slowly emerging tannins. Drinking window: 2025-2034. 93 points

These wines, which often contain a healthy percentage of Domaine J.L. Chave domaine fruit, are not Chave Lite, as many retailers are prone to suggest. These tend to be rounder, fruit-forward and more approachable than the domaine wines, which are extremely long-lived and deserving of extended cellaring. They have steadily become more intensely perfumed and flavored in recent years, with the Crozes-Hermitage Silène of particular interest. It’s made from vines in the granitic soils of the northern sector. At least half of the fruit comes from a young vineyard that Chaves owns, planted and farms, so one can understand the potential quality.”

Josh Raynolds, Vinous (12/22)