Chateau de Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape 2021 750ml

A deep, quite herbal expression, with liquorice and crushed blueberries to the cassis fruit. Full-bodied, powerfully fruited, dense and deep. Really mouthcoating, intense fruit. The tannins are ripe, fine and plentiful, all saturated in blackberry juice on a long finish. Certainly one of the more successful Châteauneufs this year. Will age well. A Mourvèdre-led expression of Beaucastel - it contains more than usual, at least 35% and probably more. Grenache and Cinsault fermented in cement, Syrah and Mourvèdre fermented in foudre.

Still a little closed, so the fruit is a bit reserved, but there are already meaty, lavender and rosemary aromas. Well-structured and crisp, the tannins building steadily as it flows over the palate. The concentrated and ripe red fruit is very deftly wrapped around the core. Long, spicy, and licorice finish.

The 2021 Chateauneuf du Pape ratchets up the intensity from the Coudelet, adding more pronounced Mourvèdre-derived notes of truffle and tree bark to go with ripe black cherries and plums, crushed stone and hints of dark chocolate. Full-bodied in the mouth, with ample concentration and richness, this gently tannic wine finishes long and velvety, with echoes of licorice and dark fruit. It's a standout from a difficult vintage.

Toasty, meaty and inviting, this fresh red shows an understated, savory side, with notes of singed spices, mesquite, wet earth and fresh tobacco leaf flanking a silky range of plum and warm cherry compote flavors. This channels its terroir, with a round feel held in check by refined tannins, while the finish is lined with cool minerality and heavy iron. Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Counoise, Vaccarèse, Terret Blanc, Muscardin, Clairette, Picpoul de Pinet, Bourboulenc, Picardan and Roussanne.