SAINT PREFERT Chateauneuf-du-Pape

WA: 92

The tank-aged 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape is 85% Grenache, with the balance equally divided among Cinsault, Mourvèdre and Syrah. Scents of ripe cherries and cola spice emerge on the nose, while the palate is full-bodied, concentrated and richly textured, with a long finish marked by softly dusty tannins. Tasted twice (once blind), with the wine at the estate seeming darker and more tannic—and perhaps a bit longer lived—than the red-fruited, silky perception when tasted blind, but both given identical ratings.

VM: 93

Shimmering ruby-red. Expressive, smoke- and mineral-accented red fruit and floral scents show fine definition and pick up a spicy accent with air. Sappy and penetrating on the palate, offering appealingly sweet raspberry, cherry and candied lavender flavors that deepen slowly through the midpalate. Shows solid, spicy thrust on a long, smooth finish framed by velvety tannins. This is an exceptional example of an entry-level Châteauneuf-du-Pape.