Jean Baptiste Souillard 2024 Roussanne, Vin de France BLANC (Ardèche)
$33.99 bottle / $179.94($29.99) six-pack
With a beautiful yellow color, the nose offers kaleidoscopic complexity with aromas of blood orange, crème patisserie, brioche and bees wax. The medium-full-bodied palate is both nervy and rich with excellent balance between the the lush fruit, good acidity and vein of minerality. Flavors of dried apricot and a little spice fan out on the expansive finish. Lip smacking good on its own, it will also complement a wide range of dishes. Enjoy this mouthwatering wine now and over the next three years.
$33.99
Jean-Baptiste Souillard 2023 Marsanne, 19.AR.82 Vin de France BLANC (Ardèche)
$54.99 bottle / $299.94(49.99) six-pack
From a 50 year old .19 hectare parcel in the lieu-dit Le Biennier above the domaine in Saint Joseph on granite planted by Jean-Baptist’s grandfather. While technically within the Saint Joseph appellation, it can’t be labeled as Saint Joseph because there were not historically white varieties planted here. The name of the wine refers to the parcel’s cadastral reference, AR.19, and 82 is Jean-Baptiste’s birth year. With a beautiful yellow color, the nose offers kaleidoscopic complexity with aromas of blood orange, crème patisserie and bees wax. This wine is at once both powerful and structured while also maintaining restraint and precision. Orchard fruit (peach) and mineral notes light up the well-structured palate. This is first class Northern Rhone white that sells for a fraction of what its competition at this level does. Can you tell I love this wine?
$54.99
Jean Baptiste Souillard 2024 Saint Joseph Blanc Les Pâles
$54.99 bottle / $299.94(49.99) six-pack
This is Marsanne from a very steep vineyard planted in the 1930s on pure limestone. With a beautiful yellow color, the nose offers kaleidoscopic complexity with aromas of blood orange, crème patisserie and bees wax. This wine is at once both powerful and structured while also maintaining restraint and precision. Orchard fruit (peach) and mineral notes light up the well-structured palate. This is first class Northern Rhone white that sells for a fraction of what its competition at this level does.
$54.99
Jean Baptiste Souillard 2024 Saint Joseph Rouge
$44.99 bottle / $239.94($39.99) six-pack
Drinking this wine reminded me of letting one’s eyes adjust to a dark night in the forest; the longer you look, the more you see, or in this case, smell and taste. Pretty cool. The youthfully tight nose offers hints of blueberries, potpourri, citrus, and licorice. The palate offers emerging notes of blueberry and raspberry fruit complemented by smoky minerals and a hint of spice framed by suave tannins. Already delicious, this wine will only improve over the next five years.
$44.99
Jean Baptiste Souillard 2023 Saint Joseph Rouge, Creux de Châtelet
$54.99 bottle / $299.94(49.99) six-pack
By this point, you know the drill: high elevation and granite “soils” in a cool site relative to the appellation. The nose is very pure with floral notes aside a hint of smoke and mineral earthiness. Pretty blueberry fruit complements a smokey-mineral earthiness. This the ripest and darkest of the Saint Joseph rouges. This will only unfold and gain in complexity with time. Drink through 2040.
$54.99
Jean Baptiste Souillard 2023 Cornas Saint Pierre
$94.99 bottle / $525.94($85.99) per six-pack
At over 1300 feet elevation, Saint Pierre is one of the coolest sites in the Cornas appellation which works perfectly in modern warm vintages. Saint Pierre is also an incredibly steep site on pure granite “soil.” As you would expect from a young Cornas, the nose is initially tight, but showing glimpses of violets, iron, dusty blackberries and a hint of wild game in the background - hell yeah! The palate is quite intense with lots of tannic structure, good acidity for freshness and incredible balance. While the seductive blueberry and blackberry fruit come to the forefront, it’s the wine’s strong core of minerality and earth-driven nature that take center stage. Classic savage Cornas. Drink 2029 - 2055.
$84.99
Jean Baptiste Souillard 2023 Cote-Rotie Coteaux de Bassenon
$94.99 bottle / $525.94($85.99) per six-pack
Finding great traditionally made Cote-Rotie at a good price is almost unheard of, but Souillard’s 2023 Cote-Rotie is just such a wine. Initially tight, the nose reluctantly reveals aromatics that are at once both floral and gamey. The beguiling aromatics segue to a palate that is both incredibly intense and elegant with raspberry and plum fruit, earth, game notes, a strong mineral core and plenty of structure ensuring a long, graceful evolution in your cool cellar. This really needs time for it to reach its apogee, like a great classic Cote-Rotie should. Drink 2030 - 2050.
$94.99