Domaine Saint Préfert Réserve Auguste Favier Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red Rhone Blend 2016

Will Stanley

Just rock-solid Châteauneuf, this is exemplary and for me personally my exact sweet-spot in terms of the varied styles from this region. The nose takes a little coaxing, but has a great yin / yang profile of pure, fresh blue fruit, liquorice, violets, and garrigue, versus seared meat, iron and loamy earth. This all puts it square in the middle of the ‘old’ and ‘new’ schools, broadly speaking, and it’s a wine that has the best of both worlds as a result. The palate is huge, an iron fist in a glove of velvet and so much more, but in no way imbalanced or over-extracted - not overtly alcoholic, at a modest 14%. It spreads out in waves across the palate, ripples which are felt long after the finish. This is clearly a baby now, but it drinks well and will see its 20th birthday in damn fine fettle. Excited to have a case in the cellar. Decanting not required nor recommended.

Laurence Feraud

White blend

Mary Rossillo

85% Grenache 15% cinsault. Restrained in aroma, but exuberantly juicy on the palate.