2012 Thierry Allemand Cornas Chaillots, Rhone, France

Thierry Allemand’s Chaillots is drawn from the domaine’s younger Syrah vines, planted on steep granite and limestone slopes in Cornas, and offers a slightly more approachable counterpart to the deeper, more powerful Reynard. Farmed organically and worked entirely by hand, the wine is fermented with whole clusters, gently extracted, and aged for two years in seasoned foudres and barriques before being bottled unfined and unfiltered with very little sulfur. The 2012 is especially polished, with cassis, black raspberry, boysenberry, violet, black olive, white pepper, and smoky mineral notes carried by silky tannins, vibrant acidity, and a long, floral finish.

95 points -Vinous