2015 Clos des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape (Pre-Arrival)

SKU #1288486 98 points Wine Spectator

This has a drop-dead gorgeous core of cassis and raspberry pâte de fruit flavors that holds center stage but still allows notes of Lapsang souchong tea, anise, incense and shiso leaf to chime in. Very long, with a sublime feel through the mineral-tinged finish. So seductive already, but this will cruise in the cellar. Drink now through 2040. *Collectables, Top 100 Wines of 2017 #14* (JM) (8/2017)

97 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

Bottled in May, the 2015 Chateauneuf du Pape is a floral, elegant, unbelievably complex wine. Roses and violets, cherries and stone fruit, cinnamon and allspice and more are carried across the full-bodied yet almost weightless palate, finishing in a swirl of silky tannins and lingering spice. Drink it over the next two decades. (JC) (10/2017)

96 points Decanter

A superlatively elegant, middleweight, Mourvèdre rich Châteauneuf that glides across the palate like silk, featuring juicy plum and strawberry fruits, lifted juniper and fennel seed freshness. Very fine clay tannins. Intense but not through extraction; generous, but with energy and precision. Effortless. (MW) (1/2017)

94-96 points Vinous

(raised in foudres) Deep ruby. Hugely aromatic red and dark berry, potpourri and floral scents are underscored by smoky minerality and an exotic suggestion of Asian spices. Sappy, focused and impressively deep yet lively, offering alluringly sweet raspberry, cherry compote and spicecake flavors and a refreshingly bitter touch of blood orange. Puts on weight and spreads out steadily with air, acquiring a succulent herb note that carries through the strikingly long, mineral-laced, gently tannic finish. This beauty is shaping up to be among the standouts of this extremely successful vintage. (JR) (3/2017)

95 points Jeb Dunnuck

Tasted on three separate occasions, the 2015 Châteauneuf-du-Pape from Paul-Vincent is a classic, elegant, and incredibly complex style of wine reminiscent of a Grand Cru Red Burgundy (Chambolle-Musigny?). Black raspberries, blueberries, incense, pine resin, dried orange and exotic floral notes give way to a medium to full-bodied, ethereally textured 2015 that has moderate tannin, beautiful purity, and a seamless finish. I compared this to an improved 2005 last year when I tasted it from barrel, but I’m not sure that comparison holds today, and I struggle to come up with another similar vintage. Nevertheless, this is a beautiful wine. (10/2017)

Jancis Robinson

Lovely dried herb aroma, like rosemary and black cherry. Leather and blackcurrant and spice on the palate with chalk-dust tannin that is very charming. There might be plenty more aromatic development to come, but the quality of fruit and poise of structure makes this very tempting to drink now. Long, leathery persistence. (RH) 17.5+/20 points (10/2018)

K&L Notes

95 points, Oz Clarke in Decanter: "Grenache at its best manages to walk a tightrope between positively raisiny richness and an unlikely, but utterly tempting, red fruit scent. The fruit here is rich, with luscious prunes and crystallised plum, which blends irresistibly with bright, warm red berry scents and a scratch of herbs." (06/2018)