2021 Saint Cosme, Cotes du Rhone Rouge, Rhone Valley, France.
The Saint Cosme Cotes du Rhone, made from 100% Syrah, is one of my favorite wines, and when blind tasted on this new 2021 edition, I absolutely loved it, without bias or expectations, re-confirming my opinion on this beautiful dark fruited wine. This 2021 shows an extra degree of concentration and plush layering, almost making me think there was some Grenache in here, though there isn’t, with loads of boysenberry, damson plum, pomegranate and blueberry fruits that is accented by violet florals, lavender, peppery briar spice, anise, kirsch and a hint of black olive. There is an absolute purity in this deeply purple/garnet hued Rhone red that is fabulous and it is an outstanding value, this wine is as good as many wines that are three or four times the price. Usually Cotes du Rhone reds include a mix of varietals, but this one lacks for nothing, and has plenty to offer with a clean full bodied palate and excellent complexity, this baby Saint Cosme will not disappoint, I recommend buying this up by the case! The terroir here is set on mostly limestone sand, red clay and pebbles on what winemaker Louis Barruol calls Villafranchian terraces that gives this wine its personality and its stylistic charm.
Louis Barruol’s Chateau de Saint Cosme, located north to the village of Gigondas, which he is most famous for, is the oldest estate in the region being on the site of an ancient Gallo-Roman villa which dates back to 1416. It is very probable that it already had its own vineyard back then, as well as having cellars carved from the natural limestone walls, with the Barruol family acquiring it back in 1570, and who, in my opinion, have made it into one the Rhone’s greatest estates. The fabulous basic Saint Cosme Cotes du Rhone is made, as mentioned, from 100% Syrah, comes from what Barruol calls top vineyard parcels, saying he is no magician, knowing only great sites made great wines. Saint Cosme mostly sources grapes for this little beauty from plots in Vinsobres, now a full AOC, which is a special area of the southern Rhone that is sublimely suited to Syrah. This Cotes du Rhone saw a very short vatting period, in cement, a technique pioneered by Louis Barruol’s father, as he notes, in fact, in the 1970s and 1980s, typically this wine only gets about 15 days in vats! This is the allow really fresh details, fruitiness and freshness to express themselves here, as this 2021 shows nicely. This 2021 is Barruol’s 25th vintage of this wine and it is definitely one of the best I’ve had, drinking as good as it gets already!
($18 Est.) 93 Points, grapelive