2015 Cote Rotie Le Combard

A rocking effort, the 2015 Côte Rôtie Coeur De Combard reveals ripe black fruits, game, leafy herbs, underbrush, and pepper, with damp flower nuances. Medium to full-bodied, round, and supple, it has a beautiful texture, fine tannins, and solid density. It's drinking nicely today with at least another decade of prime drinking ahead of it. Drink 2025-2035. Although Julien Barge is one of the younger names in Côte Rôtie, his family's roots in the region go back to 1860. After working alongside his father, Gilles Barge, Julien officially took over the domaine in 2018 and has continued the family tradition with a focus on organic farming. The estate, certified organic in 2022, farms roughly eight hectares spread across Côte Rôtie, Condrieu, and Saint Joseph. The Saint Joseph vines are located in the northern part of the appellation. In Côte Rôtie, the domaine holds parcels in Côte Blonde, Lancement, Baleyat, Boucharey, and Le Combard, a steep, south-facing site on the Côte Blonde side of the appellation. In the cellar, fermentations occur in stainless steel with a mix of destemmed and whole cluster fruit depending on the vintage, and élevage takes place in large foudres. The wines are bottled without fining or filtration. The range has been streamlined to focus on two Côte Rôtie cuvées: Les Côtes, an assemblage from several lieux-dits, and Cœur de Combard, a small-production bottling from the heart of the Le Combard vineyard. The style here remains classic, old-school, yet clean and impeccably made Cote Rotie.