2016 Domaine de la Colline St. Jean Vacqueyras Vieilles Vignes 750 ml

Jeb Dunnuck called the Domaine de la Colline Saint Jean Vacqueyras Vieilles Vignes “flat out awesome” and “unquestionably one of the gems in the terrific appellation” in his 94-point rave review. We agree: This is absolutely gorgeous, with dark fruits, chocolate, licorice, pepper, and earth, all anchored by a powerful core and given length by mouthwatering acidity. 

We realized that immediately as soon as we tasted it, tucked away among a large and extremely impressive line-up of four dozen Southern Rhône standouts from the incredible 2016 vintage, which Decanter proclaimed possibly “one of the greats.” Yet even among the tasting of high-priced regional superstars that we organized this summer in Avignon, we understood immediately that this was a wine we had to offer to our members.

Like so many of the best wines in France, the 2016 Domaine de la Colline Saint Jean Vacqueyras Vieilles Vignes is the result of centuries of knowledge and experience. For 10 generations, the Alazard family have worked this land at the base of the Dentelles de Montmirail, the iconic mountains of Provence. Now with a little more than 60 acres to their name, the family has managed to make themselves into one of the benchmark producers in this appellation that’s so firmly on the rise.

Sommeliers and other wine pros used to say that Vacqueyras was a perfect wine to enjoy while waiting for supposedly more age-worthy Châteauneuf-du-Pape to mature. But this beauty, which is lovingly crafted from hand-harvested vines as old as 100 years, is among the most impressive wines we tasted during our scouting trip to the region earlier in the year, and exceptionally age-worthy. When we all got together over aperitifs and charcuterie platters at a local wine bar once we’d finished the tasting that afternoon, this was one of our highest-scoring reds across the board… and the least expensive to earn such consensus.

We weren’t alone in being wow-ed by it. Wine Advocate later praised its “Port-like levels of intensity and concentration” with “aromas of dark fruit, licorice and chocolate.” We couldn’t stop thinking about its purity, length, and aging potential, though it’s stellar already.

It’s perfect as the weather starts to turn cooler, and just as delicious on its own as it is with the heartier foods of the season. 94-point wines like this just don’t come around all that often… and certainly not for less than $40.