Dense ruby/purple color as well as an impressive bouquet of red and black fruits (cherry, raspberry, black currant), licorice, garrigue and pepper.
The wine is dense, full-bodied, opulent and impressively endowed with sweet, well-integrated tannins.
Pairs well with red meat, white meat, game dishes in macerate sauce and cheese.
"More elegant and balanced, with beautiful black raspberry and cherry fruits, spice, and garrigue, the 2016 Vacqueyras is elegant and supple on the palate, with no hard edges. It has more elegance and is slightly better balanced than the Vieilles Vignes cuvée, but both are outstanding wines. The blend of this classic cuvée is 70% Grenache, 25% Syrah and 5% Mourvèdre."
- Jeb Dunnuck (September 26th 2018), 92 pts
"I loved the 2016 Vacqueyras from Colline Saint Jean and this tiny Vacqueyras estate has turned out a sensational 2016. Based on 70% Grenache, 25% Syrah and the rest Mourvèdre, it’s full- bodied, concentrated, ripe and polished and offers terrific notes of dark fruits, violets, and earth. Brought up in foudre and concrete tanks, it’s going to be a hidden gem."
- Jeb Dunnuck (October 2017), 91-94 pts
"Violets, lavender and raspberry notes lead the way in the 2016 Vacqueyras. It's not as dense or richly contracted as some, but it's a medium to full-bodied wine that's very drinkable, an easygoing wine with more than a little complexity. Drink it over the next several years. - Joe Czerwinski"
- Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate (August 31st 2018), 90 pts
"What looks to be a smokin’ good wine, the 2015 Vacqueyras dishes up tons of smoked herbs, licorice, spice and ripe dark fruits in a rounded, impressively textured style. Made from 70% Grenache, 25% Syrah and a splash of Mourvèdre, mostly destemmed and aged in concrete (there’s a small part in foudre), it should provide tons of pleasure over the coming decade. - Jeb Dunnuck"
- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (Issue #228, December 2016), 90-92 pts
"Crisp black cherry and raspberry tones are accented by whiffs of nuts and smoke in this unctuous, concentrated wine. While approachable and forward in fruit, it has an invigorating mineral backbone and firm, grippy tannins that lend structure and gravitas. - Anna Lee C. Iijima"
- Wine Enthusiast (July 1st 2018), 90 pts
"(20 percent whole clusters; raised in a combination of concrete tanks and small oak barrels) Deep ruby. Intense cherry and red berry aromas pick up hints of woodsmoke, anise and cracked pepper with air. Spicy and focused on the palate, offering fresh raspberry and floral pastille flavors underscored by a vein juicy acidity. Closes smoky and taut; dusty tannins build slowly and frame the juicy fruit. - Josh Raynolds"
- Antonio Galloni's Vinous (August 2017), 88-90 pts
"(raised for a year in 80% concrete tanks and used barriques): Full ruby. Lively aromas of ripe red and blue fruit, licorice and lavender are complemented by a suggestion of white pepper. Supple and broad on entry, then tighter in the midpalate, offering juicy black raspberry and bitter cherry flavors and a subtle touch of spicecake. Shows very good depth as well as vivacity, finishing with slow-building tannins and minerally persistence. - Josh Raynolds"
- Antonio Galloni's Vinous (April 2016), 90 pts
"The 2013 Vacqueyras is borderline outstanding and has pretty peppery notes of menthol, Christmas spice, plum and black raspberries in a medium to full-bodied, rounded and forward style on the palate. Made from 70% Grenache, 25% Syrah and a splash Mourvedre, it’s one of the more fruit forward efforts in the vintage and has lots to like."
- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (Issue #223, March 2016), 89 pts
"This sensational 2012 Vacqueyras can be found discounted for $25 a bottle. A blend of 70% Grenache, 25% Syrah and 5% Mourvèdre, it offers up meaty, black raspberry and blackcurrant fruit intermixed with roasted Provençal herbs, anise and a gamey smokiness. Medium to full-bodied, rich, chewy and intense, but supple and opulent, it is a well-crafted, full-throttle Vacqueyras to drink over the next 4-5 years. It is also a sleeper of the vintage. - Robert Parker"
- Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate (November 2014), 92 pts
Located in the village of Vacqueyras, at the foot of Dentelles de Montmirail, Domaine de La Colline St. Jean has been a family-owned property for several generations. Roland Alazard, his ...
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