2023 Domaine Franck Balthazar "Cuvée Casimir" Cornas

The 2023 Cornas Cuvée Casimir Balthazar opens with expressive notes of orange blossom, fresh violets, black cherry, red plum, stemmy nuances and fine traces of cured meat. On the medium-bodied palate, it shows lifted freshness and impressive clarity. This is a carefully built, densely packed Cornas that I admittedly underestimated when tasting it from barrel at the winery last year. Like the Chaillot Cuvée Hommage from the same vintage, it carries tremendous intensity yet never feels heavy. Simply gorgeous. (NG)