Étienne Barret, Crozes Hermitage, Northern Rhône, 2012

Bright, peppery nose with hints of dark chocolate. On the palate, supple fruit flavours, lifted by an appetising black pepper crunch, weave around a delicate web of tannin and minerality.

The bouquet is evolving and offers an air of plump red fruit with a low-key meaty angle. Palate rejoices in a similar symposium of fruit.