Saint Joseph Le Clos, Maison M. Chapoutier 2020

It's always fun to taste the Les Granits next to the Le Clos, as the wines are dramatically different. The 2020 Saint Joseph Le Clos comes from a higher elevation, more east-facing site, and the alcohol is always a touch lower here, checking in at 13.6%, with the Les Granits being 14.1%. Closed and tight aromatically, it slowly offers up pure cassis, mulberry, and scorched earth-like aromatics, and I always find a Hermitage-like regalness in this wine. Full-bodied, pure, utterly seamless, concentrated, and with a great finish, this is as classy and refined as Saint Joseph gets. Hide bottles for 4-5 years if you can and enjoy over the following two decades. It's one of the greatest Saint Josephs out there. 2027 - 2047

Dense black fruit overlaid with violets - very much in the Mauves style of Saint-Joseph. Peppery and spicy, full-bodied without heaviness, this feels dense but not overly thick. Tannins are chalky but melting, like 100% pure cocoa. The oak is a little more pronounced than with this producer's Les Granits cuvée, but it's nicely integrated. There's intense concentration and deep, dark tannins before the lifted finish. May prove to be the best vintage yet of Le Clos. 2027 - 2035

Lots of smoke and smoked bacon character in the nose, but also the blackest forest berries and a whiff of tar. Concentrated, compact and cool with a wonderful wild herb freshness and a pretty radical stony minerality. Then you come back and find violets and licorice. As the wine aerates the minerality gets more and more intense. From an east-facing parcel with granitic soil. From biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification. Drinkable now, but best from 2025.

The 2020 Saint Joseph Le Clos comes from a higher elevation, east-facing site south of Tournon, which would seem to be a cooler terroir, but this is an early ripening site that produces incredible wines. Cassis, violets, powdered granite, and bouquet garni give way to a medium to full-bodied, elegant, pure, and utterly seamless Saint Joseph that will have two decades of longevity.