Another special cuvée, the 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape les Hauts des Coteaux is a blend of 90% Grenache and 5% each Mourvèdre and Syrah. Maturation takes place in a mix of new oak barriques (20%), older wood (40%) and concrete tanks (40%). Scents of purple raspberries lead the way, and it's expressive but less floral than the single-domaine wines. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied and rich, velvety and plush, long and concentrated.

A classic Grenache-Syrah-Mourvèdre assemblage updated by aging in about 20% new barriques, the 2017 Chateauneuf du Pape les Hauts des Coteaux is on the light, herbal side, boasting scents of thyme, sage and bay leaf, modest cherry fruit and hints of dark chocolate. A bit of a disappointment compared with how it showed prior to bottling, but at least it has largely absorbed the oak treatment and remains silky and reasonably elegant.

A fifth of the 2016 Chateauneuf du Pape les Hauts des Coteaux aged in new oak barriques, giving it a glossy sheen of cedar and vanilla and a plush, velvety feel on the palate. There's some attractive cherry and spice elements, but it comes across as a nice, somewhat generic, oaky red.

The 2015 Chateauneuf du Pape Les Hauts des Coteaux sees a bit of new oak, so expect hints of vanilla and baking spices layered over the black cherry fruit. It's plush and creamy on the palate but not overdone, easing into a finish that shows traces of bitterness and warmth.

Tasted out of barrel, the 2013 Chateauneuf du Pape les Hatus des Coteaux will be a blend of 90% Grenache and 5% each of Syrah and Mourvèdre. Coming from the Chapouin and Baratin lieux-dits and aged in tank for 12 months, it’s a sweetly fruits, medium-bodied, well-made effort that offers lots of plums, mulberries and spring flowers on the nose. It’s another charmer from this estate to drink in its first 4-5 years of life.