Mostly Grenache blended with some old vine Carignan (and I think some Cabernet Sauvignon), the 2000 L’Ermita is a beauty that’s still youthful. Deep ruby/plum-colored, with a smoking nose of pencil lead, ripe black cherries, blackberries, and crushed rock, it hits the palate with a full-bodied, powerful, yet pure and beautifully balanced profile. This is a fabulously pure, even elegant Grenache that still has sweet tannins and a blockbuster finish. Even at age 19 it still has another decade of longevity.

Bright medium ruby. An essence of berries on the nose; like a liqueur, with an almost medicinal suggestion of sheer concentration. Superripe and incredibly lush; as thick as this is, there's no heaviness thanks to its penetrating spiciness and solid backbone. Wonderfully perfumed in the mouth. Urgent finishing fruit currently hides the lush tannins. A wine of extraordinary length.