2014 Chateauneuf du Pape Reine Bois

Full ruby. Powerful, smoke-accented boysenberry and black raspberry on the perfumed nose. Broad and fleshy on the palate, offering bitter cherry, dark berry and licorice flavors that gain spiciness and energy with aeration. Shows very good thrust and breadth on the dark-fruit-dominated finish, which is firmed by broad, mounting tannins. In a substantial style but not lacking for vivacity.

75% Grenache, 14% Mourvèdre, 7% Syrah and 2% each of Counoise and Vaccarèse. A little more lifted than the Belle Voyageuse. Intensely sweet but fresh red-cherry fruit. The tannins are finer too, drier and more refined. Very satisfying and well balanced even with lots of big flavours. (JH)

Tasted blind. Blackish purple. Attractive savoury freshness on the nose. Quite marked acid and tannin – a particularly youthful wine. Lots of chewy tannin on the end – one of the more severe but I think it will get there in the end. (JR)