Champet Côte-Rôtie La Viallière 2022

Not yet reviewed; 2021 vintage rated 94 points by John Gilman (View From the Cellar): "The 2021 la Viallière from Romain and Maxime Champet is a wonderfully classical example of Côte-Rôtie, showing off the beautifully proportioned components of this lovely vintage. The bouquet is deep, complex and precise, wafting from the glass in a youthful blend of cassis, dark berries, spit-roasted venison, pepper, plenty of smokiness, a gorgeous base of soil, plenty of stem tones and a gently reductive touch of new leather in the upper register. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied and light on its feet, in the manner of young examples of Côte-Rôtie from the ‘70s and ‘80s. The wine has fine depth at the core, lovely transparency and grip, ripe tannins and a long, seamlessly balanced, complex finish. It is the kind of wine that will put on weight with bottle age. After all of the hot summers here that have made fairly powerful wines, it is so refreshing to taste a vintage of old school classical proportions! 2036-2085."