Côte Rôtie Côte Brune, Domaine Jean-Paul Jamet 2016

Still awaiting bottling, the 2016 Cote Rotie Cote Brune is a terrific wine, showing incredible violet and herb nuances on the nose, along with raspberries, blueberries and olives. It's medium to full-bodied, with a wonderfully silky texture and tremendous length on the finish. It's so complex, so elegant, that it's easy to drink already, yet it should go 20+ years in the cellar effortlessly.

Though this has the same purity as the Équivoque and the Côte Rôtie, the Brune shows more character, more energy and more depth. Cool, with finely etched fruit against flecks of spice and dried flowers, this is trying to push through but is also a little closed for now. The finish is very long indeed, and has flourishes of bacon fat, grouse and ground pepper. Give it time. (TP)
Drink 2025 – 2040