Domaine de Cébène Felgaria 2018 Faugères

From the finest plots of south-facing Mourvedre and north-facing Syrah and Grenache, grown on an isolated hill at 320 m above sea level. This is Brigitte Chevalier's top cuvée and the only one which sees any sort of oak regime, being both fermented and aged in used 500 litre barrels for 1 year. And it certainly combines all of the best aspects of her other three cuvées. Medium-deep ruby/garnet red in colour, it is a wine made for the long haul, and therefore benefits from a little air before drinking. As with every vintage of this wine, we have a wonderfully complex and heady perfume of cassis, bramble and blackcurrant mingled with high-toned black cherry and seville orange, myriad herbs and exotic spices, blood/meat, new leather and a hint of carefully judged oak. At 5 years of age ,the palate is already beginning to hit its stride - supremely complex, supple and elegant, yet wonderfully concentrated, with myriad fresh and crystallised red and black fruit flavours, subtle spice and savoury notes, fine, lapsang tea-like tannins, cracking acidity and a long finish. Once again, a truly lovely, elegant, feminine wine - and in my opinion the best vintage so far. Granted, it isn't cheap.......... but Faugères does not get any better than this. A genuine classic Languedoc wine.