96
Jeb Dunnuck - jebdunnuck.com
"The 2015 Saint Joseph Les Royes offers a similar, if not slightly darker purple color to go with additional minerality, tons of cassis, graphite and charcoal aromatics, building tannin, and a great, great finish. Like a lot of 2015s, it's charming and approachable today, yet has the tannin and concentration to cruise in the cellar. This cuvée comes from a six-hectare, full south-facing vineyard in the southern part of the appellation, and was brought up in a mix of smaller barrels. The Courbis brothers have hit a home run with these 2015s, the finest wines I’ve tasted from this brilliant estate."
93-95+ Jeb Dunnuck - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
“The inky black/blue-colored 2015 Saint Joseph les Royes from the Courbis team was brought up in one-third each of new, once and twice-used barrels. It offers sensational notes of crème de cassis toasted bread, licorice and pen ink in a massive, rich, concentrated, layered style that is shocking in its depth and richness. It's a crazy good St Joseph.
An estate that readers need to have on their radar is that of Brothers Laurent and Dominique Courbis, in the village of Châteaubourg. The entire lineup is a treasure trove of quality wines, which can generally be found at reasonable prices."
91-93 Josh Raynolds - Vinous Media
"Opaque ruby. Ripe dark berries, cherry liqueur, olive and pipe tobacco on the highly perfumed nose; a smoky element adds vivacity. Energetic blackberry, bitter cherry and violet pastille flavors show excellent clarity and a hint of licorice that builds with air. The smooth, smoke-tinged finish emphatically repeats the floral and licorice notes, and supple tannins build steadily while folding into the intense dark fruit."
92 Wine Spectator
"Ripe, fleshy and focused, with delicious warm plum sauce and blackberry confiture flavors coursing over graphite, anise and Christmas pudding notes. A fruit-dominant style. Drink now through 2021. 160 cases imported."
"The terraced, cliff-like Saint-Joseph Les Royes vineyard (*only 4 ha) is a spectacular “cirque” or extremely steep amphitheater. It is located at the southernmost limit of the Saint-Joseph appellation, abutting the border of Cornas. The exposition is to the south-east, so the amphitheater retains the heat of the day, while completely protecting the vines from northerly winds.
The chalky soil is a mixture of clay, granite, and limestone. Yields are a miniscule 25 hl/ha and the vines average 30 years of age.
The Syrah grapes for Les Royes Rouge are given a three week maceration period and fermented in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks. The wine is aged 100% in barrels, of which 1/3 are new; 1/3 one wine and 1/3 two wines. After 12-14 months in cask, the wine is assembled and aged for 3 additional months in tank before bottling. A profound and complex wine with sweet black cherry-raspberry fruit, notes of minerals and smoke, and ripe tannins that give it remarkable structure.
The origins of the Courbis family estate date back to the 16th century. More recently, the brothers Dominique and Laurent Courbis succeeded their father, Maurice, in the early 1990s. They have since firmly established themselves as leaders of the modern school of winemaking in St Joseph and Cornas. The Courbis style may be summarized as offering wines filled with intense aromas and concentrated fruit with great purity and length. This is in large part achieved by a combination of meticulous and sustainable vineyard work undertaken to attain perfectly ripe, healthy, concentrated grapes together with fermenting in tanks and aging in barriques.
The wines emphasize the expression of fruit while highlighting the specific character of the various St-Joseph and Cornas vineyard origins." -Importer