Cote Rotie Rochains, Domaine Patrick & Christophe Bonnefond 2003

The inky/blue/purple-tinged 2003 Cote Rotie Les Rochains (a 2.78-acre vineyard) is a floral, bacon fat, litchi nut, black raspberry, and blackberry-filled effort. Opulent, rich, and slightly less tannic and backward than the 2003 Cote Rozier, it is an enormously-endowed, exemplary example of Cote Rotie from an extreme vintage. Well-balanced and incredibly pure, it is one for anthology. Give it 2-4 years of bottle age, and drink it over the following two decades.

Tipping the scales at 14.8% alcohol (astonishing by Cote Rotie standards), the 2003 Cote Rotie Les Rochains is produced from a 2.78-acre parcel with a south by southwest exposure. The most precocious, sumptuous, and voluptuous of this trio, it boasts loads of black fruits intermixed with scorched earth, fried bacon fat, licorice, and herbs. This full-bodied, ripe, dense, opulent beauty is impossible to resist. It should drink well for 10-12 years.