2016 Xavier Vignon Arcane VI Les Amoureux Cotes Du Rhone 750 ml

In the summer of 2009, Robert Parker published issue #185 of his Wine Advocate newsletter. A section titled “Focus on the Southern Rhône” shined the critic’s spotlight on the region’s 2007 vintage, which he called its most extraordinary since 1978.

After reading Parker’s report, we—like many of America’s top importers—took to the phones, setting up a number of meetings with the Rhône’s top estates. But our focus wasn’t only on the icons: A largely unknown winemaker/enologist named Xavier Vignon also garnered plenty of attention in #185, so we called him too.

Vignon is no longer the Southern Rhone’s best kept secret—Parker put an end to that.  And in a 2016 growing season filled with hot summer days and unusually cool, star-filled nights, Vignon once again brought nearly all the top Rhône critics to their knees with his 2016 “Amoureux,” a blend of ancient-vine Grenache and Mourvedre drawn from five appellations.  

The result, Vignon’s 2016 Arcane VI Les Amoureux Côtes du Rhône, is a study in the majesty of ancient-vine fruit from a vintage that’s been compared to the legendary 2007 and 1978. In the words of Parker’s Wine Advocate (issue #239 this time), it’s “sheer deliciousness.” 

A luminous ruby-purple color, the wine bursts with aromas of wild raspberry, blueberry, and blackberry, with bold notes of garrigue, white pepper, and toast. Packed with red-fruit concentration, it’s lush and silken on the palate, with structure that leads to a deliciously rich and long finish.

94 points from Parker’s Wine Advocate. 94+ from Rhône Valley expert Jeb Dunnuck. This is one of the great bargains from this historic harvest, and we’ve got just 40 cases up for grabs.