Côte Rôtie, La Viaillère, 2019

An engaging and nicely-balanced note of summer pudding and pine aromatics on the nose. The palate offers a burst of sweetly-scented violet and bramble flavours, developing into notes of dried flower and Victoria plum. As audacious, smooth and inviting as this is initially, there is also a sense of balance, composure and a clear vibrancy to the fruit. The wine is built on a denser tannic framework than La Viallère usually has, but the tannins are noble and round enough to meld into the fruit rather than overpower it. One of CLusel-Roch’s great Viallères. Clusel Roch decided, as of the 2009 vintage, to bottle this up as a separate cuvée, when their vines had reached 32 years old and were producing outstanding wines. The parcel located at the bottom of the slope still goes into the main Cote Rotie blend. Aged for around 16 months in a maximum of 15% new oak.