Gigondas Hautes Garrigues Domaine Santa Duc 2016 (750ML)

95-97 Points. Joe Czerwinski, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "Flowering garrigue, black cherries and licorice all pop on the nose of the 2016 Gigondas Les Hautes Garrigues. Full-bodied, rich, velvety and intense without being overbearing, it's a tremendous effort, with the poise, grace and charm of Disney's Fantasia ballet-dancing hippo. And the finish is long-really long." 8/18

92-94 Points, Josh Raynolds, Vinous: "Bright violet. Spice- and floral-accented aromas of black raspberry, boysenberry and candied licorice, along with a smoky mineral element that builds in the glass. Alluringly sweet and pliant in the mouth, offering intense red and blue fruit and lavender pastille flavors that are given spine by a core of juicy acidity. Closes extremely long, with emphatic, spicy cut, harmonious tannins and lingering florality." 08/18

93-94 Points, James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com: "Beautifully fresh, earthy aromas of wild herbs, undergrowth, dark berries and chocolate. The palate has deep-set, smooth and juicy tannins. Long and layered, this is a commanding, elegant Gigondas. Barrel sample." 08/18

95+ Points, Jeb Dunnuck, www.jebdunnuck.com: "Always the richest, most powerful wine in the lineup, the 2016 Gigondas Hautes Garrigues offers a rocking bouquet of black cherries, blackberries, bouquet garni, pepper, and fresh earth. Full-bodied, beautifully concentrated, and with building tannins, it's certainly a more fresh, stylish example of this cuvée and is a perfect wine from readers wanting to understand the changes that have happened at this estate over the past decade or so. Give this beauty 2-4 years of bottle age and enjoy it over the following decade." 9/18