2016 MERCUREY LE CHAPITRE RöD LORENZON, 75 cl

A wine that would embarrass most of the appellation's premiers crus, the 2016 Mercurey Le Châpitre offers up a generous bouquet of crushed red cherries, cassis and spices. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, layered and succulent, with fine-grained tannins, a lovely core of fruit and a pure, transparent profile, concluding with light grip.WA 90 ”Lorenzon's wines are expensive, and he isn't afraid to express voluble pride in his achievements, but there's simply no arguing with quality in the bottle: his reds, much improved in recent years, have few rivals in Mercurey, and his whites none. Purity, delineation and concentration are the watchwords here, and the vines are trained higher than his neighbors' and farmed organically-very rare in this appellation. I can only concur with the high esteem in which Lorenzon's wines are held by the French wine press and warmly encourage readers to try them. 2016 is a strong vintage at this address, classic in the best sense, and the wines are attractively effortless. WA”