2016 Franck Balthazar, Cornas, Chaillot 1x750ml

Vinous 95

Inky ruby. Vibrant, highly perfumed blue fruit, potpourri and incense aromas display outstanding clarity and pick up exotic spice and smoky mineral notes with aeration. Pure, focused and lively in the mouth, offering appealingly sweet blueberry, cherry preserve and violet pastille flavors that show superb depth and no rough edges. Deepens slowly on the impressively long, energetic finish, which features resonating florality and sneaky, slow-mounting tannins. [Josh Raynolds, 09/04/2019]

Anticipated maturity: 2024-2033

Robert Parker 93

More meaty and savory than the younger vintages I tasted, Balthazar’s 2016 Cornas Chaillot still shows herbal notes and red currants. Medium to full-bodied, it’s firm, chewy and long. Perhaps more classic in style than the 2017 or 2018, it was harvested on September 20, more than a week later than those warmer years. [Joe Czerwinski, 07/16/2019]

Anticipated maturity: 2021-2035