Organically grown Rhône deliciousness at 40% off from a 99-points vintage. Now that’s rare! Read on, Operatives… Less than an hour southwest of Châteauneuf-du-Pape lies Costières de Nîmes, with a climate and terroir that is near identical, and with wines that overdeliver for their price points. That’s exactly what we have here with the awesome rooster on the label, proudly French, while ecologically on Planet Earth’s side all the way. Defining what boutique production is all about, this under the radar Rhône red is a tremendous bargain…

Dense purple-colored, with a radiant glow, lustrous through scarlet highlights. A reference point for the appellation, with its black fruits, pepper, and flowers on the open-knit nose. Abundant black cherries, cassis, and plum with hints of herbs, soy, and licorice enhance this red with a mighty mouthfeel further. Super long and grippy as it closes, with fresh acidity peeking through authoritative tannins. A sumptuously rich slow-cooked stew, or game such as pheasant, quail, venison would match it perfectly.

Moreover, the 2016 vintage was one of the best ever here as praised by Jeb Dunnuck per the harvest report excerpt below, and he is the leading authority for the region. In all honesty, this manages to drink like many $100 cult wines of the Southern Rhône, with complexity via the ‘natural’ ways to spare, showcasing once again that small is beautiful. It’s a traditionally made wine with a modern sensibility, so it will hugely appeal to fans of Grenache, Syrah and Rhône blends from all over the world.

Here’s what the wine press says on ‘16 Southern Rhônes:

Wine Spectator – 99 Points! “This truly rare vintage is a new benchmark. The growing season was warm during the day but cool at night, with an unusually large diurnal swing that led to slow, even ripening across all varieties while maintaining acidity. Reds are laden with fruit, yet extremely racy and fresh in feel; whites are pure, brimming with energy.”

Jeb Dunnuck, Le Millésime “The 2016 vintage was truly extraordinary for the Southern Rhône and is a vintage that readers should buy with abandon. This is the greatest young vintage from the Southern Rhône Valley I’ve ever tasted, both in terms of quality as well as consistency. I’ve never seen so many traditional cuvées achieve such high quality nor so many estates produce such truly extraordinary wines. In fact, the quality of many base cuvées made me ponder more than once if it was worth the uptick in price for the more expensive special cuvées. While these are ripe, concentrated, and exuberant wines, they also show an incredible purity of fruit as well as weightless, sensationally balanced profiles on the palate. They are complex, powerful wines that satisfy both the intellectual and the hedonistic parts of the brain. Rhône lovers will be comparing the 2016s, 2010s, and 2007s long into the future, and you will want these wines in your cellar.”