Wine Reviews

Coming from three hectares of vines in Crozes, the 2022 Crozes-Hermitage Domaine De Roure is another impressive barrel sample. Ripe black fruits, sappy, minty herbs, and pepper all emerge on the nose, and it’s medium-bodied, with a silky, Burgundian mouthfeel and integrated tannins. It’s a pretty, finesse-driven, elegant wine.

Leading off the 2022s, the 2022 Crozes-Hermitage Domaine De Thalabert is terrific, with up-front, ripe cassis, graphite, tobacco, and peppery, herbal notes to go with medium-bodied density and depth on the palate. I love its overall sense of balance and elegance, and it has good concentration as well as ripe tannins. It actually reminds me slightly of the 1990 (which is absolutely brilliant today).

The 2022 Hermitage La Maison Bleue is another bright, juicy, focused wine from Frey. Black raspberries, hints of cassis, leather, rose, and peppery notes all define the aromatics, and it hits the palate with medium-bodied richness, a pure, elegant profile, fine tannins, and outstanding length. It’s not massive by any means, but it has beautiful finesse and elegance.

A beautiful sense of minerality as well as black raspberries, spring flowers, violets, and hints of chocolate covered orange emerge from the 2022 Saint Joseph La Croix Des Vignes, a balanced, silky, elegant Saint Joseph that has beautiful finesse and elegance. It has ample granite-like minerality and character and should benefit from just a few years of bottle age.

White peach, honeyed lemon, and hints of minerality as well as flowers all emerge from the 2022 Condrieu Les Grands Amandiers, a medium-bodied, bright, racy, yet incredibly pure, seamless Condrieu. It plays in the bright, racy end of the spectrum but has incredible purity and vibrancy