Lancyre 2010 年的 Coteaux du Languedoc Pic Saint-Loup Vieilles Vignes 由 2/3 Syrah 和 1/3 Grenache 混釀而成，帶煙熏味，開始的時候成熟水果的香味較含蓄，但入口后帶有酸酸的紅色覆盆子和櫻桃的味道以及帶刺激性的矮藥草味和櫻桃核有活力的苦味，單寧緊實(shí)精細(xì)。余味悠長、輕快且有活力，其間隱含的碎石頭及泥煤的味道融合了甘美漿果帶來的十足明快感。此款酒要到第二年的早春時節(jié)才會裝瓶，但我擔(dān)心它的活力或純凈果香在那時會有所減弱。至少在 4 至 5 年內(nèi)，此款酒還是值得追隨的。

The tank-rendered, 65% Syrah-35% Grenache Lancyre 2009 Coteaux du Languedoc Pic Saint-Loup Vieilles Vignes suffers slightly – like its Coste d’Aleyrac counterpart – from extraneous tannin, although its combination of cherry and rhubarb with cherry pit and black pepper offers tartness and invigoration welcome in the context of this vintage. The synergy of pungency and astringency in the finish though will I suspect strike most tasters as double-edged, but this is impressive in sheer grip and persistence, with meaty and stony notes emerging on aeration to supply some depth. It might well benefit from a year or two in bottling, and certainly ought to useful for at least 3-4. 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

Lancyre’s 2008 Coteaux du Languedoc Pic Saint-Loup Vieilles Vignes – even tasted right after the rather astringent corresponding 2009 – proved slightly choked-up by its tannin and less clear in fruit than I would have expected, especially given the performance of this vintage’s Coste d’Aleyrac bottling. Tart-edged cherry and marginally ripe black raspberry with prominence of their pits and seeds segue into the tannic impingement, while a suggestion of crushed stone adds depth at the price of some austerity. This grips, but without the energy and refreshment afforded by its ostensibly lesser sibling. Perhaps there will be better days for this cuvee but I would approach it warily if hanging on to bottles for more than a couple more 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