Rotem & Mounir Saouma, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Arioso Rouge 2013

Tasting like a Grand Cru from Chambertin, the 2013 Châteauneuf-Du-Pape Arioso is 100% Grenache from the Pignan plateau that spent three years in barrel, on lees, before being bottled unfined and unfiltered. Black cherry, forest floor, spring flowers, damp earth, and spice all flow to a medium-bodied, ethereally textured, seamless 2013 that opens up beautifully with time in the glass. Again, this is unquestionably a Burgundy lover’s Châteauneuf, and it shines more for its nuance, elegance, and complex more so than outright power and richness. With bright, yet integrated acidity and ample, sweet tannin, it’s a sensational 2013 and one of the best from the vintage.

This domaine is owned by Burgundy-based Mounir and Rotem Saouma, and you can certainly find more than passing resemblances to high-class Burgundies in these wines. They prefer long elevages, with the wines spending plenty of time on skins in amphoras and casks. These are expensive, yet beautiful wines.

Brilliant ruby. High-pitched, mineral-tinged aromas of fresh dark berries and pungent flowers show outstanding clarity and lift. Smooth, sweet and energetic on the palate, offering intense blackberry and floral pastille flavors sharpened by an exotic Asian spice flourish. The extremely long, focused finish is given shape by smooth tannins that sneak in slowly.