Taking the new Tautavel for a spin around the block… Typically I run into older vintages of this, so it is fun to try something fresh. Gobs of funk and barnyard on the nose, along with the expectant France Sud heat and dryness. Sweaty and dank, dried cherry, licorice and sage getting plenty of air-time, a deep and dirty–but well-balanced–bouquet, playing plenty of steely spice against all the Roussillon roughness.

Energetically ripe in the mouth, the spice and early acid cuts the murky blackberry swizzles like a razor. Forthright and poised, rich and almost decadent in concentration but never going slutty, and managing the heat nicely. Mild tannins frame the finish, the only place a tad of heat puts the pepper on.

I love this brand, and for the money, you’d be hard-pressed to find a more enjoyable bottle the uninitiated can slurp and the 1% can geek out on.

2016 GERARD BERTRAND Tautavel GR/SY/CG Cotes du Roussillon Villages 14.5

https://www.gerard-bertrand.com/pages/ultimate-french-wine-experience2