2013 Cotes du Roussillon Bila Haut Occultum Lapidem

Slightly more ripe, voluptuous and textured than the more Syrah-dominated l’Esquerda, the translucent purple-colored 2013 Cotes du Roussillon Villages Latour de France Occultum Lapidem comes from the schist soils around the village of Latour de France. A blend of 50% Syrah, 40% Grenache and 10% Carignan that was harvest on September 15 and aged all in concrete tanks, it’s a fabulous wine that offers elegant notes of red and black raspberries, roasted herbs, pepper, melted licorice and asphalt. These flow to a medium to full-bodied 2013 that has a full, layered mid-palate, beautiful fruit, fine tannin and a classically focused, dry finish. It continues to freshen up in the glass, has integrated acidity and lots of class. Buy this brilliant wine by the case and drink it over the coming decade.||These latest releases from Michel Chapoutier are all superb. At the lower price points, it’s hard to beat the Marius releases, and while fruit-forward and geared for early consumption, they’re far from simple fruit bombs and have real class. The Agly Brothers releases, which are a collaboration between Michel and Ron Laughton of Jasper Hill in Heathcote, Australia, seem to have hit another level of quality, with these 2013s and 2014s the best yet. Unfortunately, these are made in tiny quantities and are hard to find in the market. Nevertheless, even at $50, they remain solid values given the quality. As to the Bila Haut releases, these continue to be tweaked, and the team here is slowly reducing the amount of Carignan in the blends (the same is true for Agly Brothers releases). It’s yet to be determined if these latest releases are better than the stunning 2011s and 2012s, but they’re certainly as good, and I think the cooler nature of the vintage worked beautifully for these wine. It’s not in bottle yet, but I think the 2013 Lesquerde RI might be the greatest wine made from the region to date. The team here also loves their 2014s, and while I wasn't able to taste extensively from the vintage, these barrel samples were at the top of what I tasted. While the top releases are made in miniscule quantities, the lower-tier releases, particularly the L’Esquerda and Occultum Lapidem, should be readily available and allow readers to buy a bottle and taste for themselves before buying more. I think these are brilliant wines. eRobertParker.com.April, 2015