Robert Parker called the 2007 vintage in Southern Rhone “the greatest vintage I have tasted in my 30 years working in that region… Moreover, the vintage is remarkably consistent from top to bottom”.  That quality and consistency might be perfectly expressed in the 2007 Font du Vent Cotes du Rhone-Villages Notre Passion Signor, which is the best Rhone value I’ve tasted all year.  This wine would probably be good in an average vintage, but in an historic vintage like 2007, it’s incredible.  This $11 Cotes-du-Rhone Villages tastes like a pretty good Châteauneuf-du-Pape.  That’s really saying something.

Everything about this wine is well put together, fresh and elegant.  Like most wines of this style, it’s not influenced by a lot of oak, though half of it does see some time in barrels.  The bouquet of strawberry and honey leads into a firm attack that has a perfect balance of fruit and mineral flavors on the palate.  I literally can’t understand how someone can grow, ferment, blend, bottle and ship a wine of this quality for $11, but I’m really glad they did.

I can’t think of a better daily drinker red than this awesome Rhone.  Buy a case of this and the 2007 Sean Minor “Four Bears” Cabernet we wrote up in July, and you will have 24 evenings of daily drinking pleasure.  I can’t overstate the value of either of these wines.  I taste hundreds of different wines a year, and these are at the top of the heap in terms of value.

Buy Here: 2007 Font du Vent Cotes du Rhone-Villages Notre Passion Signor

Wine Spectator 88 points

“A nice pure beam of raspberry and red cherry fruit is supported by cocoa powder and graphite notes. The fresh, stylish finish has good underlying grip. Drink now through 2010. 3,100 cases made.”

2007 has been an amazing year for Rhone reds and here is the great thing about the best vintages: they turn traditional “great values” into knockout classics.  70% Grenache and 30% Syrah, this wine pours a deep opaque purple/red color that suggests good things are to come, and it doesn’t disappoint.

At first, I thought the nose was a little closed with a touch too much alcohol, but after an hour in a decanter it totally changed, showing a great peppery scent framed by ripe fruit and nice smokey overtones.  This wine tastes dense and bold, if a little rustic, without being overblown.  What differentiates old world Rhone from many of the new world Rhone blends is they show a great constraint and clarity while still being aggressive, concentrated, bold and lengthy.

This wine will only get better with age (the same reason it improved throughout the evening).  I’m going to put a few back and try it again in five years.  I think it will gain a significant complexity which will only serve to build on the great wine it already is. It’s my birthday today and I look forward to opening another bottle on April 8, 2015, if not before!  Under $20 for a potential RP 93 Cotes du Rhone-Villages?  Amazing.

Robert Parker 91-93 Points

“The 2007 Cotes du Rhone-Villages Rasteau La Ponce (70% Grenache and 30% Syrah) reveals a smoky, chocolaty, meaty character as well as abundant quantities of black cherry jam displayed in a full-bodied, sensationally concentrated, dense, chewy style that saturates the palate. The vintage’s greatness is noticeable in the noble, ripe tannins and stunning length. This serious wine should age for 10-15 years.

Readers should be on the lookout for the wines from this superb estate. None other than the brilliant southern Rhone oenologist Philippe Cambie is the consultant at Domaine des Escarvailles, and their 2006s were profiled with considerable accolades in issue #178′s report on the World’s Greatest Wine Values. The 2007s are the finest wines yet produced at this estate. Proprietor Gilles Farran owns some sensational old vines spread among his 160+ acres in the Cotes du Rhone and the Cotes du Rhone-Villages of Rasteau, Cairanne, and Roaix. Yields are low, with most of the vineyards rendering less than 30 hectoliters per hectare. Don’t forget about the extraordinary, bargain-priced Cotes du Rhone reviewed in issue #178, Domaine Calendal, which is a joint project of Philippe Cambie and proprietor Giles Farran” (WA)

2007 Domaine des Escaravailles Cotes-du-Rhone Rasteau La Ponce- LA Wine Company $18.85