The medium-bodied 2016 Cotes du Rhone Villages Esprit Devin has to be regarded as a bit of a disappointment. It offers youthful, tangy purple fruit and a bit of cracked pepper, but it lacks mid-palate richness and depth. Drink this blend of 60% Grenache and 20% each Mourvèdre and Syrah over the next few years.

The estate makes two C?tes du Rh?ne reds, both of which are well worth seeking out. The concentrated and structured 2015 C?tes du Rh?ne Villages L'Esprit Devin offers more chocolate, dark fruits, toasted spice and earth in a medium to full-bodied, rich, textured package. It will be slightly longer lived than the Paroles de Femme cuvée.

Even better than the Paroles de Femme, the 2014 C?tes du Rh?ne Villages Esprit Devin offers just about everything you could want from a C?tes du Rh?ne. Roasted Proven?al herbs, melted licorice and the essence of blackberry and cassis fruit all flow nicely to an inky colored, rich, textured, shockingly concentrated wine that has sweet tannin and a great finish. Buy this blockbuster by the case and drink it over the coming 4-5 years.

A blend of 60% Grenache, 20% Mourvedre and 20% Syrah that was aged in 60% concrete tank and 40% in barrel, the 2013 C?tes du Rh?ne Villages Esprit Devin offers loads of chocolaty dark fruit, dusty minerality and spice to go with a beautifully ripe, medium-bodied, textured and layered feel on the palate. It’s an impressive 2013 that will drink nicely over the coming 4-5 years.

A small step up over the straight C?tes du Rh?ne (and also a step up in price), the 2012 C?tes du Rh?ne Villages Esprit Devin has loads of mulled red and black fruits, leather, herbes de Provence and spice to go with a medium-bodied, rounded, sexy style on the palate. This has come together beautifully since I tasted it last year, and it should continue to impress through 2020.