Cornas, Domaine du Tunnel 2011

One of the top efforts, the 2011 Cornas (aged 15 months in one- to two-year-old barrels) is a big, voluptuous and textured effort that offers up peppery cassis and dark fruits, underbrush and earth to go with medium to full-bodied richness, building tannin and serious length on the palate. A big, sexy Cornas, it stays lively and fresh, with fantastic purity of fruit. Drink it over the coming 10-12 years.

Proprietor Stephane Robert is knocking it out of the park from his tiny cellar located in Saint Peray. Producing up to three Cornas in any given vintage, he also releases four whites from Saint Peray and a serious Saint Joseph.