2016 Hermitage

Philippe Guigal calls 2017 “a year of weight but also structure. The wines don’t show the way people imagine hot-year wines do. There is no overripeness or softness. It’s an interesting mix of qualities.” Two thousand sixteen is the current release for the La La bottlings, and Guigal’s take on the vintage is that “it was a nice change from the strictness and power of the ‘15s, which are going to need a lot of patience.” Compared to the earlier vintage, the 2016s “show more classic elegance, which is the style that Côte-Rôtie became famous for in the first place,” he said. They are highly age-worthy, he thinks, “because they have excellent freshness and the tannins are in great balance with the fruit, not standing out even if they’re young.” I have mentioned before that the Côte-Rôtie Château d’Ampuis delivers fabulous value for a high-end wine of the appellation, and that is definitely the case with the fabulous 2016, a wine that should be high up on any Guigal enthusiast’s shopping list. I’d also look out for the Saint-Josephs from 2017, which are among the best examples of that region that I have ever tasted here. Better yet, they can be found relatively easily and the pricing, especially for the Lieu-dit Saint-Joseph, can be extremely fair given the quality.