More generous and fleshy, the 2011 Cotes du Rhone Les Quatres Terres offers loads of sweet cherry fruit, licorice and earth, as well as a medium-bodied, supple and fruit-loaded profile on the palate. Drink it over the coming couple of years.
This was a solid tasting with proprietor Yves Gras. One of the benchmark estates in Gigondas, the estate also releases a number of high-quality negociant wines from Sablet, Vin de Pays and Cotes du Rhone. While 2011 and 2012 are strong vintages here, the wines are more streamlines and focused than in the past, and in the case of the 2012s, should benefit from short-term cellaring, as I found most to be closed and tight.
Importer: Robert Kacher Selections, New York, NY; tel. (212) 239-1275