Hermitage La Chapelle, Domaine Paul Jaboulet Aine 2010

It should be fascinating to compare the potentially legendary 2010 Hermitage La Chapelle with the prodigious 2009 La Chapelle over the next 30-40 years. About 20% new oak was used, and, as were previous vintages, the 2010 was aged 15 months prior to bottling. This black/purple-colored beauty is revealing more weight and richness than it did last year from barrel, along with great precision, stunning minerality and enormous quantities of blackberry, cassis, beef blood and smoked game intertwined with hints of graphite and acacia flowers. With good acidity and richness as well as abundant, but ripe, well-integrated tannin, this great wine equals the titan produced in 2009. Forget it for 7-10 years and drink it over the following 30-50 years.

Opaque purple. Heady, intensely perfumed aromas of candied blueberry, cherry and violet, with a wild array of spice and herb qualities adding complexity. Cassis, bitter cherry and floral pastille flavors stain the palate, with a vibrant mineral nuance providing lift. Closes with superb energy and cut, leaving floral, spice and blue fruit notes behind. I'd love to get my hands on some of this but between the low yield (reportedly between 10 and 18 hectoliters per hectare) and inevitable high price, who knows?