Domaine Berthoumieux was founded in the 1850s in Viella (home of the Three Musketeers). It was taken over in the 1990s by Marie-Line and Didier Barré, who was one of many young winemakers at that time greatly inspired by Alain Brumont of Domaine Bouscasse/Château Montus fame. This cuvée is 90% Tannat with 10% Cabernet Sauvignon from 50- to 100-year-old vines. Grapes are de-stemmed and fermented separately in concrete tanks. The wine is then transferred to oak barrels (50% new), where it undergoes malolactic fermentation. After 12 months in wood, the wine is blended and bottled after a very light filtration.

The result? A full-throttle, take-no-prisoners red. In the glass, it’s an opaque ruby-purple, with aromas of black raspberry, black plum, cassis, tar, bay leaf, black pepper, cacao, and violets. It is medium-plus in body with a nice dose of sappy mid-palate fruit that tames Tannat’s tannins and lends some lushness to the texture. Wow!