M. Chapoutier, Hermitage, l'Ermite Rouge 2010

Crushed rock, spring flowers and a liqueur of granite are all present in the inky/purple colored 2010 Ermitage L’Ermite. It is almost a crime trying to describe a wine such as this, since so few people will ever get to taste it in its full prime, which is probably a good 25-30 years away. Super-pure, rich and full-bodied, this is a great example from Michel Chapoutier, certainly up there with the top vintages of this wine to date. It will require unbelievable patience and needs at least a decade or more of cellaring before being consumed.

As I have written many times, all of these wines are produced from rigidly cultivated, bio-dynamically managed vineyards. That has been the rule since Michel Chapoutier first took over this firm in the late 1980s. Now, with over 20 years of biodynamic viticulture under his belt, Chapoutier remains committed to this rather radical style of organic farming. He believes the effect is to reduce rot in damp, rainy vintages.

Controversial, outspoken and brutally candid, Chapoutier, who suffers no fools, continues to admirably produce wines that are among the finest in the world and potentially the longest lived. Refusing to acidify, chaptalize, or touch the wines in any way, he clearly wants every wine to capture the very essence of its terroir and vintage personality.