Elegant, perfumed and racy, the 2023 Hermitage Les Bessards is the highlight of Delas’s range. Wafting from the glass with aromas of rose, lychee, grapefruit and violet, it’s dense and deep, built around perfectly controlled power and a structured core of fruit framed by abundant, sweet tannins that lead to a long, ethereal and precise finish. Combining telluric density with finesse and a notably tensile profile for Hermitage, this is one of the finest renditions of Les Bessards produced at this address.

The 2023 Saint-Joseph François de Tournon clearly benefits from the conditions of the vintage, allowing its terroir to express itself with clarity. Revealing aromas of spices, timut pepper, grapefruit and dark wild berries, it’s medium- to full-bodied, dense, concentrated and layered, with a precise, delicately textured mid-palate framed by velvety, fine-grained tannins and concluding with a long, mineral finish. Produced with a combination of estate-grown and purchased fruit, it was vinified with around 20% whole clusters and matured entirely in barriques, including 25% new oak. It should age gracefully over the coming years.

With a ripe profile, the 2023 Côte-Rôtie La Landonne unfurls from the glass with a complex, delicate and racy bouquet of tapenade, spices, dark berries and pepper. Medium- to full-bodied, structured and concentrated, it’s built around a lively, tensile core of fruit framed by filigreed, sweet tannins that lead to a long, beautifully spicy and ethereal finish. Combining power and precision, it marries the telluric force of the terroir with precise tannins and a silky mouthfeel that has become a hallmark of Delas’s style in recent years.

The 2023 Côte-Rôtie Seigneur de Maugiron is the inaugural vintage to be matured in 25-hectoliter foudres. Entirely destemmed, it reveals aromas of tapenade, black olive, spices and dark berries, with notes of gentian and licorice adding complexity. Medium- to full-bodied, dense and structured, it’s underpinned by fine acidity, offering depth and a subtle, well-integrated oak influence. Mineral and precise, it concludes with a long, structured finish.

The 2023 Hermitage Domaine des Tourettes is more spicy than most wines in the Delas range, revealing aromas of licorice, thyme, timut pepper and a hint of grapefruit alongside dark fruit. Medium- to full-bodied, dense and fleshy, it’s deep and structured, supported by a lively line of acidity that brings a welcome sense of freshness for the appellation. Long and precise, it concludes with a delicate, persistent finish.