2020 Côte-Rôtie Côte Brune Domaine Rostaing

A completely different beast, yet every bit as good, the 2020 Côte Rôtie Côte Brune reveals a dense purple hue to go with powerful, layered aromatics of black and blue fruits, iron, rose petal, violets, and pepper. Where the Côte Blonde is expansive and sexy, this stays incredibly focused, with remarkable purity, perfect tannins, and a finish that won't quit. Hats off to the team at Rostaing for another monumental Côte Rôtie that I wish every reader could taste. Hide bottles for 7-8 years and enjoy over the following 20-25+ years.

A compelling rose fragrance, then such wonderfully rounded, juicy tannins in the mouth. Perfectly balanced and fresh, but explosive, long, flamboyant and captivating, with pliable, springy tannins. What a stunning wine. Picked on the 26th august. It had four weeks in tank, 18 months in oak (limited new oak), fermented with natural yeasts and with as many stems as possible.

Another enormously impressive barrel sample, the 2020 Cote Rotie Cote Brune is dark and plummy, with overtones of black olives, espresso and crushed stone. Full-bodied, concentrated and rich, it's dense, velvety and long on the finish. It's not as flattering to taste currently as the Cote Blonde, but it will be interesting to watch how the wines evolve over time—expect them to run neck and neck for a couple of decades.