Lancyre’s 2009 Coteaux du Languedoc Pic Saint-Loup La Coste d’Aleyrac – to whose Syrah and Grenache, in consideration of vintage heat and low acidity, a touch of Cinsault rather than of Carignan has been added – exhibits a surprising degree of refreshment and levity for its vintage, with piquant cherry stone and crunch of berry seed invigoratingly accenting its ripe red and black fruits, while an undertone of roasted red meat lends depth. Disappointing is merely the slight tendency of the tannins here to leave one’s gums a bit numb, something I am skeptical will diminish with time in bottle. But certainly this ought to drink well for at least the next several years. Regis Valentin once again displayed many successes across a stylistically diverse range. The 2009s here are however mildly disappointing – a circumstance not unfamiliar from Pic Saint-Loup – especially when directly compared with results from 2008, whose October harvest of Syrah, incidentally, was the latest in the estate’s history. As so often, though, 2010 is especially exciting, and the young reds from this vintage were already too deliciously expressive for me to resist publishing notes. Re-tasting the 2007 reds – on which I had last reported before bottling in issue 183 – they remain impressive (with the exception of the Grande Cuvee, now performing on the lower side of my pre-bottling projection), although their bitter elements and tannin were somewhat enhanced, and I re-rated both the Coste d’Aleyrac and Vieilles Vignes 90 points. Valentin graciously consented on this occasion to my request to taste some older vintages of his Roussanne – bottles of which I was thrilled to discover that he indeed cellars, and that you and I should, too!Imported by Handpicked Selections, Warrenton, VA; tel. (540) 347 9400