2018 Châteauneuf-du-Pape

The Perrin family needs no introduction to Rhône wine lovers, such has been the success of their work at their domaine in the northern reaches of the appellation. Despite the weather challenges of 2017, 2018 and 2019, the classic cuvée maintain a legendary reputation in Châteauneuf and have even improved on it. Give these vintages some time in bottle, especially the 2019. In the rarefied world of wine collectors, this bottling’s excellence is often overshadowed by the existence of the Mourvèdre-driven Hommage à Jacques Perrin. Made in small quantities and first introduced with the 1989 vintage, Hommage à Jacques Perrin is admittedly one of the great wines of France, and its stature is well-earned. As perverse as it may sound, I am happy to see the Perrins pushing the price up of the “regular” wine, while maintaining the tariff for the Hommage. The quality-to-price differential is simply not 10 to 1, no matter how you slice it.

Marc Perrin said that "2017 has a lot in common with 2007, but there’s more energy and freshness" to the wines, which he thinks will reward patience. Of course, Mourvèdre always makes up a great amount of the blend, so age-worthiness is pretty much always a given, even in lighter years (not that there have been many of those lately). Perrin told me that the original cuttings of Mourvèdre came from the Bandol's highly esteemed Domaine Tempier, with the oldest planting dates back to 1909. Those old vines provide the base for the always-astonishing and patience-demanding Hommage à Jacques Perrin bottling, which is typically, as with 2016, made up of at least 75% of the variety. The 1990 version of that wine is simply amazing right now, and it’s still got years left in it.