91 John Gilman - View from the Cellar

"For those (like me) who cannot remember, the old vine bottlings from Georges Descombes are distinguished by a heavier bottle and are sealed with red wax (rather than a capsule), but the labels do not say Vieilles Vignes anywhere on them. The 2018 Saint-Amour old vine cuvée from Monsieur Descombes is a wine of stunning depth and impressive purity for the vintage, wafting from the glass in a constellation of plums, red and black cherries, gamebird, a superb base of soil tones, crushed violets and a bit of dark chocolate in the upper register. On the palate the wine is bright, full-bodied and still has a bit of CO2 in solution, with a great core of fruit, fine mineral detail, a bit of ripe tannin and a touch of backend volatile acidity. For the moment, the VA dissipates nicely with air and the wine is drinking very well indeed. 2020- 2030+?"