Ermitage du Pic St-Loup (France) Cuvee Sainte Agnes 2000
Pic St-Loup is a small, but very high quality ‘cru’ of the Languedoc, with vineyards planted mostly to Syrah, with Mourvedre and Grenache too. The vineyards are cool and elevated, formed around the Pic St-Loup, a 600-metere high limestone outcrop. This micro-climate gives these wines more elegance than many from the area. The nose here is very seductive, with coffee-bean and briar adding warming depth to crunchy raspberry and cherry fruit, and little violet and herbal nuances. The palate is silky and quite rich, with plenty of black fruit and more of that zippy raspberry lightness of touch. Fine, but quite authoritative tannins make an impression on the finish in this balanced wine of really good length. Drink or cellar for a few years.
