Cuilleron, Cote Rotie, Bonnivieres

Drank several bottles over several days with varied amounts of air. The nose shone throughout, although it changed from dark, brooding and mineral inflected on opening to rope, herbal and with multitudinous flowers, smokey fat and blue-black fruits with time. The tannins needed a good 6 hours in decanter for my taste, and the wine was generally best on day 2 after opening. When it showed best, it oozed class, with purity, concentration and length. I am buying more to …

We drank the 2015 Cote Rotie with rack of lamb. I double decanted it in the afternoon. Cuilleron may not be fashionable among the Northern Rhone cognoscenti and glitterati but this little number is an absolute show stopper. Clearly 2015 was a generous vintage in the Northern Rhone but this opened up spectacularly well, and really delivered plenty of rocky minerality/schist notes and Mediterranean herbs in addition to the vibrant primary fruits.

Aiolos Tasting (Intercontinental Hotel) : The wine shows full garrique, gamey and spicy profile, ripe red fruit, very elegant and decadent (which I love). The wine is very elegant in the palate, smooth tannins, mineral, gamey, medium body and medium to long finish. Outstanding

2015 Rhone Tasting (Spectrum Wine - Tustin CA) : Tasting, brief note. From a lieu-dit in the center of Côte-Rôtie with an eastern exposure. The biggest of the three cuvees, but not yet perfectly balanced. Black fruit with good+ density, slightly lean middle and an increasingly complex finish. Certainly better 5 years from now, but tough to fully/ fairly assess. 90-93 point potential.