One of the more concentrated 2020s from the appellation, the 2020 Crozes Hermitage les Pierrelles features scents of plummy fruit, mixed raspberries and black cherries, black olives and dark loam. It's medium to full-bodied, framed by soft tannins and finishes long, with hints of licorice and mocha, and a softly dusty texture. Tasted twice (once blind), with consistent notes.

The 2018 Crozes Hermitage les Pierrelles made for a great start to my visit at this standout estate. It's grapey and intense, with hints of cedary wood accenting blueberry and blackberry fruit. It's full-bodied and supple, finishing lush and even a bit warm. It should be a lot of fun to drink as a young wine.

Belle's 2017 Crozes Hermitage les Pierrelles is as good an entry-level Crozes as one is likely to find. Scents of leather, mocha and plum give it a sense of complexity not often found in such a round, generous Syrah. It's full-bodied and a bit creamy across the mid-palate, then tightens up to finish firm, with notes of cracked pepper and dark fruit. Tasted twice (once blind), with consistent notes.

Belle's 2016 Crozes Hermitage les Pierrelles comes not from the area around the winery but from the clay and galet soils around Pont d'Isère. It's a classic, fruit-forward expression of the appellation, meant to be consumed young. Pepper, licorice and clove notes accent cherry and plum in this supple, medium to full-bodied effort that goes down far too easy.

Belle's 2015 Crozes Hermitage les Pierrelles is an awfully good entry-level Crozes. It's atypically concentrated and intense, but that's the vintage speaking, providing leather and dried fruit notes and rich tannins. I don't know whether it will age well, but it makes for fine drinking now and over the next few years.