Lurid ruby-red. Powerful Chambord, cherry pastry, incense, lavender and spicecake aromas show sharp definition and pick up a lively mineral nuance as the wine opens up. Sweet and seamless on the palate, offering deeply concentrated but energetic raspberry, cherry liqueur, five-spice powder and floral pastille flavors that are given lift by a jolt of juicy acidity. Suavely blends richness and finesse and finishes extremely long and smooth, with resonating florality and spiciness and pliant tannins that lend shape and gentle grip.

From old-vine Grenache in sand, the 2018 Chateauneuf du Pape Pure is a full-bodied beauty. Fully ripe, boasting notes of black cherries, wild herbs and hints of dark chocolate, it nevertheless comes across as silky and almost airy on the palate, while showing real intensity and length on the licorice-tinged finish.