INSIDER'S PICK: 2017 DOMAINE BERTHET-RAYNE CAIRANNE VIEILLES VIGNES $19.99

Sometimes a run of success for a wine can be a bit of a burden. The two previous vintages for this bottling were wildly successful, receiving strong press from multiple sources and selling like gangbusters, especially for the price point. As all good vintages are finite and must come to an end, the distributor moved quickly from one to the next, and now has the newest vintage in house and ready to go. We tasted on it, enjoyed it just as much as the previous two, and brought it in as soon as the last of the 2016 sold through. The problem for some seems to be that the wine has arrived ahead of its press, and have had a bit of 'wait and see' approach to trying the 2017. We are equally excited with it as we were when we first tasted the 2015 and 2016, so we think we are ahead of the hype in getting behind the newest vintage, and think you will agree once you taste it.

A blend of Biodnamic farmed Grenach, Syrah, and Carignan aged in tank and bottle give the wine plenty of accessible fruit even being fairly young, with lots of black fruits, currants and cocoa tones with hints of savory earth. The texture is fairly full with a noticeable dusty texture to the red fruits due to the unfiltered texture, which brings out the cocoa tones on the palate as well. The juicier fruit notes aren't quite as pronounced in some ways as the previous vintages, but they do start to show through more as the wine is opened up, so it may just be as much about the newness of the wine to the bottle as it is vintage variation. The wine certainly doesn't lack for anything, and can stand on its own merits as a high quality value. Make your own call and get this into your drinking rotation before the rest of the world catches on!

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