La Viallière Côte-Rôtie Syrah

Mind blown. How is it possible I've never even heard of this producer before? Thank you to Mannie Berk and Rare Wine Co. for putting Champet on the radar. This fully lives up to the sales pitch. It is about as ultra-classic a Cote-Rotie as I've ever had, almost like a cross between Levet and Jamet. Even the label design is retro. The material is red-fruited, savory, and succulent, with a pronounced stony/graphite streak. The stems are immediately evident giving the wine some spine and tension and a bit of a green snap. On some sips the tannic muscle is evident, on others it's fully absorbed into the wine and the texture is almost velvety. Thus, while the flavors have that meaty syrah succulence that you could sort of describe as rustic (more beefy than bacon here), the texture here is actually quite refined and civilized. No funk going on here either. It seems pretty close to straight soil-to-glass transfer Cote-Rotie.

Very pure and layered

Sort of ratch in the best possible way... bacon, green pepper, cedar, black pepper, grilled herb, with fresh blue blackberry emerging with extended air time. The severe vegetal notes and burly tannins can be off-putting now, but have faith.

Mixed pepper (black, green, pink) and meat. Stems- hot earth.

Drinking nice as it opens up.

Funkily underwhelming

Kinda barnyard funky but light and awesome

Black plum, cola, cocoa, olives, peppercorns. Really great. Got it at Table and wine

Sea salt and ocean nose with crushed pepper and tobacco on the pallet.

2005 -- still a bit young, but with all the typicity of Côte-Rôtie. Quite lovely, a great food wine.