M. Chapoutier Chateauneuf du Pape Croix de Bois 2012

Almost as good as the Barbe Rac, the 2012 Châteauneuf du Pape Croix de Bois (100% Grenache from century-old vines and clay soils) is a stunning wine offering plenty of black fruit, spiced cherry, chocolate, garrigue and a light saline minerality on the nose and palate. Full-bodied and impressively concentrated, with a rock-star texture, notable purity and good underlying structure, this is a serious, fruit-laden Chateauneuf.