“Opaque magenta. Mineral- and smoke-accented dark berry, candied licorice, bacon fat and floral aromas show outstanding clarity and spicy lift. Densely packed, appealingly sweet cherry, blueberry and spicecake flavors are braced by an undercurrent of smoky minerality. Shows a suave floral note on the impressively persistent finish, which is shaped by smooth, well-judged tannins.”

“Brilliant purple color. Pungent dark berries, licorice, smoked meat and potpourri on the highly perfumed nose. Shows very good depth as well as energy on the palate, which offers nervy, spice-accented cassis, bitter cherry and black pepper flavors that become sweeter as the wine opens up. Steadily building tannins frame a very long, focused finish that echoes the floral and smoke notes.”

“Inky ruby. Assertive, smoke-accented aromas of ripe black and blue fruits, candied flowers, olive and exotic spices show excellent clarity and mineral lift. Sweet, pliant and lush on the palate, offering concentrated blackberry, cherry liqueur, smoky bacon and violet pastille flavors that show a peppery note on the back half. The impressively long, youthfully tannic finish shows fine detail and leaves behind repeating smoke and floral notes.”

“Deep, vivid ruby. Smoky, mineral- and spice-accented red and dark berry preserve scents show excellent clarity and a sexy floral top note. Offers concentrated but wonderfully energetic blackberry, bitter cherry and spicecake flavors that become sweeter and pick up hints of candied flowers, vanilla and olive on the back half. Finishes chewy, sharply focused and extremely long, with solid tannins adding shape and final grip.”

“Inky ruby. Smoke- and mineral-accented black and blue fruits, violet, licorice and an olive nuance on the deeply perfumed nose. Stains the palate with intense cherry, blueberry and fruitcake flavors that are sharpened by a spicy touch of cracked pepper. Youthfully chewy tannins frame an impressively long, penetrating finish that leaves candied dark berry and floral pastille notes behind. These are still young days for this wine but, as usual, it already screams "Hermitage".”