Mas Coutelou Classe 2020 Vin de France

Mainly Syrah, plus a little Grenache and Mourvedre. Bright, semi-translucent carmine red colour, leading to a fairly narrow rim. The nose suggests a more serious wine than some of the earlier wines in the Coutelou range. Whilst it still displays the Coutelou hallmark of bucket-loads of fruit - notably, in this case, soused bramble, damson and raspberry - it also offers a really quite intoxicating array of secondary aromas and flavours, including cedar, old leather, peppery spice and herbs, with little hints of flowers and even white fruits peeping through. The palate too is more serious, with firm tannins and spiky acidity currently jostling for position with a huge core of sweet-sour red cherry and dark bramble fruit, with a sprinkle of white pepper and spice and plenty of earthy minerality adding yet more grip. The finish is long, tangy and firm. And whilst it really is no hardship to drink on its own (I'm doing pretty well, whilst writing this note), there's no denying that it needs food to show its best - at least for the moment. And over the next year or two, it should really get into its stride, no doubt gaining in complexity as it ages. As the label suggests, this really is "a touch of class in a glass".