2015 Domaine Giraud Châteauneuf-du-Pape Les Gallimardes

Coming from very old vines located in the heart of the les Gallimardes lieu-dit, which is in the southern part of the appellation, the 2015 Châteauneuf-du-Pape les Gallimardes (90% Grenache and 10% Syrah brought up all in concrete tank) boast awesome notes of blackberries, roasted herbs, and licorice. It’s a rich, powerful concentrated effort that has sweet tannin and a decadent style. Give it 2-3 years and enjoy over the following two decades. There are just 200 cases available. This estate has been run flawlessly by Marie Giraud for more than a decade now and the estate is consistently in the top handful of domaines in each vintage. She’s excelled in the more difficult 2015 vintage, and has produced some of the wines of the vintage in 2016. If you don’t know about Domaine Giraud, you’re missing out.

Lurid ruby. High-pitched cherry, raspberry and candied lavender scents pick up allspice and mineral qualities with air. Supple, densely packed red fruit liqueur, cherry pie and floral pastille flavors stain the palate, while juicy acidity and a star anise nuance build on the back half. Supple, fine-grained tannins come in late and lend shape to an impressively long, focused, floral-dominated finish that shows no rough edges.