Côte Rôtie, Les Schistes, 2018

Ripe, soft red fruit aromatics precede an intense palate dominated by loganberry and cherry, with a faint touch of bramble. Powerful yet composed, the ripe red berry-orientated fruit is bound by intense but voluptuous tannins. The sensual, engaging fruit crescendos across the palate into more arid, savoury overtones of herb, salt and sandalwood - adding a welcome complexity that offsets the richness of the kirsch note on the finish. A blend largely from the schist, south-east facing vineyards of the Verenay commune including the lower part of Viaillere, Champon and Le Plan. As ever a proportion of whole bunches have been used in fermentation, a little larger than normal given the ripeness of the crop - 50%. Ageing is in oak barriques for at least 15 months with less than 15% new wood.