2017 Saint-Joseph Les Lauves

Laure Colombo’s 2017s are looking decidedly forward, with assertive, fruit-driven bouquets, very good depth of flavor and polished even tannins. She doesn’t consider it a year for long-term aging, “but because of the low yield and small berries the wines have more richness and power than those from other forward vintages like 2014 and 2012.” Laure Colombo’s wines have a relatively lighter touch than those made by her parents. Anne and Jean-Luc Colombo, made the wines through the 2000s, in a definitely not delicate style. Laure Colombo, like her neighbors, lamented the severity of 2017’s short crop, noting that production was off by about a third compared to normal and also pointing out that Cornas suffered the most crop loss, overall, of the northern Rhône red-wine producing appellations.