2019 is the second vintage since Thomas Farge took over making of the wines from his father.
Whites:
2019 Vin de Pays dArdèche Bouquet de Blanc
This wine is a blend of equal parts of Viognier, Marsanne, and Roussanne, fermented with indigenous yeasts and raised in stainless steel tank. It has apricot aromas and flavors, a silky-creamy texture to its medium-weight body, and crisp acidity. It should be best over the next year or two as an aperitif, with fish dishes, and even with creamy cheese. Agglomerate cork closure. 13% stated alcohol. 88/A
2019 Saint-Peray Grain de Silex
Unusually in the Northern Rhône, where Roussanne can present difficulties, this wine is 90% Roussanne and 10% Marsanne. The soils are clay-limestone. The Roussanne dominance is shown by the apricot fruit in the nose and mouth. The mouth is medium-weight and a bit oily, but with good freshness and acidity. I’d drink this wine over the next couple of years. DIAM 5 closure. 13.5% stated alcohol. 90/A
2019 Saint-Joseph Vania
A rather typical Saint-Joseph blanc, this wine is crisp and stony with plenty of white fruits and minerality. You can drink it now for those qualities, or age it 4-5 years, when it will begin to fill out and presumably show more ripe fruits. 80% Marsanne, 20% Roussanne. DIAM 5 closure. 13.5% stated alcohol. 87(+)/B
Reds:
2019 Vin de Pays dArdèche Bouquet de Syrah
Syrah from areas that are not the major appellations can be chancy, but this one hits the spot. It has concentrated dark plum fruit in a medium-weight body, making for excellent drinking over the next 3-5 years. DIAM 3 closure. 13.5% stated alcohol. 89/A
2019 Saint-Joseph Terroir de Granit
Medium-weight with violets and dark plum fruit, this is an enjoyable, even if not profound, wine for drinking over the next 8-10 years, maybe slightly chilled. DIAM 5 closure. 89/B+
2019 Saint-Joseph Passion de Terraces
This wine is from many of the estate’s oldest vines. It is balanced and pure with still quite a bit of tannin showing (all whole clusters, aged in 400 liter barrels, a small portion of which are new). The wine has tapenade aromas and is medium-weight and dense with violet and dark fruit flavors. I get a very slight burn on the finish, presumably from the alcohol. The wine can be drunk now, but will be better starting 4-5 years from now. DIAM 10 closure. 14% stated alcohol. 91/A
2019 Saint-Joseph Côte du Pouly
This is a very tricky wine to taste just right. It has both high alcohol and also quite a bit of tannin. To hold the alcohol in check, you want to keep the temperature cool; but to keep the tannins for being too assertive, you don’t want to serve the wine too cool. I’d say cellar temperature (14-15ºC, 57-59ºF) should be about right. There, the wine is full-bodied and somewhat powerful with dark fruits and some violets. Because of the high tannins and alcohol, I’d tend to drink the wine young this way, but that is not the way I think it was intended: this cuvée was created to celebrate the passing of winemaking duties from father Guy to son Thomas, and so it is made from one of the estate’s best parcels and probably meant as a wine to age for quite some time. DIAM 10 closure. 14.5% stated alcohol. 89/B+
2019 Cornas Harmonie
This is a medium-weight wine with black walnut and tapenade aromas, moderate acidity, and deep dark fruit flavors. It can be drunk with pleasure already and should hold for at least 10-12 more years. Primarily from the Reynaud lieu-dit with some Saumur. DIAM 10 closure. 14% stated alcohol. 92/A
2019 Cornas Reynard
Dark, impenetrable appearance. Black walnuts in nose. Medium-weight, dense, smooth, dark fruits, especially plum. A bit of heat on the finish — another wine that I would recommend serving cooler than normal. DIAM 10 closure. 14% stated alcohol. 92(+?)/A