2001 Gigondas Les Hautes Garriges

Saturated ruby-red. Brooding aromas of bitter cherry, leather, pipe tobacco and Valrhona chocolate; showing strong suggestions of surmaturite Then huge, thick and robust, with powerfully ripe, peppery, mourvedre-influenced flavors spreading out to capture the entire palate. Began a bit aggressive but turned increasingly silky as it opened in the glass. Finishes with great grip and ripeness, with the tannins coating the front teeth. In its extreme ripeness and huge dimension, this reminded me of a Chateauneuf du Pape from Henri Bonneau.

(15.5% alcohol; from a crop level of 25 hectoliters per hectare, according to Gras) Saturated ruby. Slightly reduced, deep, sauvage nose combines blackberry, blueberry, organ meats and dark chocolate. An explosive, superconcentrated Gigondas with sappy, chewy flavors of outstanding breadth and depth. Huge tannins are buried under a tidal wave of fruit (next to this wine, the tannins of the 2000 seem almost dry). A no-holds-barred wine recommended for fans of sheer size. This may represent a pinnacle for this estate, as it offers extraordinary ripeness of flavor without going pruney. Aged for 24 months without a racking.