La Joie, Vérité Winery 2016

Wonderful purity of cabernet on the nose with blackcurrants and fresh lavender. Full body, with ultra-fine tannins and great beauty in the texture and flavors. It changes all the time. Extremely complex. 84 per cent cabernet sauvignon, 11 per cent merlot and five per cent petit verdot. So approachable, but needs at least three to four years to come together completely.

The 2016 La Joie is decidedly heavy on the Cabernet Sauvignon, which comes through loud and clear in this super-expressive wine. Nuanced, powerful and deep, with tons of richness, the 2016 is shaping up to be a very complete wine. The aromatic intensity here is superb. I can't wait to see where it goes in coming years. Graphite, smoke, crème de cassis, dark spices and lavender build into the super-expressive finish.

The 2016 La Joie is a blend of 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot. Very deep purple-black in color, it gives up the most gorgeous scents of lilacs, baking spices, incense and star anise with a core of warm cassis, Black Forest cake, redcurrant jelly and unsmoked cigars. Full-bodied and built like a brick house, it has a firm frame of very ripe, grainy tannins and bold, multilayered black fruit, finishing very long and very spicy. 3,200 cases produced.

A blend of 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot, the 2016 La Joie (a barrel sample) has a very deep purple-black color and is a little closed at this nascent stage, slowly unfurling to reveal crushed black currants, blackberry coulis and Christmas cake notes with touches of cigar box, pencil lead, bay leaves and espresso plus a waft of lavender. Medium to full-bodied and packed to the gills with tightly wound black fruit preserves, floral and spicy layers, it has a firm frame of grainy tannins and seamless freshness, finishing very long. 3,200 cases will be made.