Julien Cecillon, Saint-Joseph, Babylone

Ouverture en avance De belles années devant lui

100% whole bunch aged 18 months in old oak Very Syrah color, young Nose with violets, meaty and bloody and a bit wild, in a good way. Blackberries. Palate has present tannins with black fruit. Finishes with nice acidity. It's very young. Very nice wine

La Tablee: Julien Cecillon Dinner with Julien Cecillon (Gus's Chophouse) : The thing I appreciated the most about some of the younger Julien wines was the precision in them. A clear acid backbone that stands up the wine. This didn't quite have that same style. More barnyard and a bit darker and almost brooding in nature. Less fruit here. Still a nice wine but I like the evolution that the wines have taken. First vintage.

See previous note, this came across a little thinner than last time. Still good but not quite as good................

Colour mid red. Big change in nose from 2 years ago, more depth , leather and damson. Broadened out on palate and more classic. Long finish. Ready now but still on upward curve.

Double decanted, which helped out to a certain degree but this is still a younger wine with a tight tannic structure that is hiding the fruit and complexity it will likely develop. The potential is there so either give it ample air time or more cellar time to allow it to express it full character.

Deep colour, v typical northern Rhone nose. Good fruit on palate mineral lacks some intensity and a little diffuse on finish. Good but simple and ready to drink and for five years

deep coloured. Young fresh syrah nose , red fruits on palate, slight modern gloss. May develop

This is a terrific St.-Joseph that fills a nice niche in the world of syrah I don't encounter nearly as often as I'd like - it has all the earthy funk, cracked pepper, and dry-aged meatiness of a powerful Northern Rhone yet instead of the slick, dense fruit and/or ripping tannic muscle that ordinarily accompanies that, it's a buoyant middleweight with pure fruit firmly on the red-fruit side of the spectrum. It's almost like a friendlier version of a Levet …