Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe : Télégramme 2022

Distinctive in a very good way, this chooses savory elegance over power. A refreshing and mineral-driven style, with appealing pepper, spice box and chestnut, all surrounding a core of red currant threaded with a stream of herbs. With warm earth on the seductively textured palate, this shows good energy and harmony through the vibrant finish, marked by iron and smoked meat. Well-done. Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre and Cinsault. Drink now through 2032. 2,464 cases imported.

An elegant expression of grenache in Chateauneuf, this has a wealth of red berries and summer flowers. The very solid tannins have been expertly crafted, and they build beautifully in the long finish. Considering how the vineyards were hit by hail just before the harvest, this has turned out very well. Drink or hold.

No Vieux Télégraphe grand vin was produced in 2022. Cask sample. Juicy, lively, inviting nose. Notes of tabasco and white pepper. Sweet, succulent, tight tannins. Surprisingly open and ready already, yet still has texture and structure. (AC)

The 2022 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Télégramme kicks off with crushed violets, ripe raspberry, wild strawberry and a pinch of dried herbs. Leafy gradations add more complexity. Round and elegant, the full-bodied 2022 walks off the stage with persistence on the juicy finish. What a lovely Châteauneuf-du-Pape.

The only wine produced in the vintage due to the devastating tornado just before the harvest, the 2022 Châteauneuf Du Pape Télégramme seems to be a mix of a normal Vieux Télégraphe and a Télégramme. Black raspberries, darker cherries, peppery garrigue, and a Grand Vin sense of salty minerality define the aromatics, and it's medium-bodied on the palate, has rock-solid ripeness, plenty of tannins, and outstanding length. It doesn't have the elegance of the Grand Vin in its tannins, but it's clearly a beautiful Télégramme.

Precise nose dominated by Grenache: dark fruits, spices, a floral hint, with no heaviness. The juice is fleshy and concentrated, offering greater tannic density than the Piedlong terroir, true to what one expects from a blend of different terroirs within the appellation: a wine of fine quality, capable of ageing well.