Immediately, powerfully fragrant and spicy. There's so much going on in the upper registers it takes a while for a thread of rich, red berry fruit to begin asserting itself. I'd say there's a reasonable amount of oak here, very much of the savoury, spicy variety. This isn't a wine that sneaks up. Rather, it is a bold challenge, throwing complexity and savouriness in your face by way of a rather frenetic aroma profile. Yet it remains nimble.
Domaine Anne et Hervé Sigaut
Price: $A69
Closure: Cork
I was almost reluctant to taste this wine, as I wasn't sure how its relative cacophany of aromas might translate to the palate. Certainly, oak-driven spice continues as a key thread in the mouth. There's so much more here, though. The attack is alive with fine, firm acidity that seems to jolt the tongue, only to be replaced in an instant by a more plush, fruit-driven impression. Indeed, detailed red fruit flavours begin to the caress the mouth most seductively, taking in the oak's savouriness plus a general sense of detail and creating, from it all, a lushly feminine coherence. Fragrant vanilla overlays an after palate of clean red fruit and brambles, possibly some tobacco leaf, and ultra fine tannins that dry the edges of the tongue. Quite a long finish that suggests cherry liqueur in its concentration and smoothness.
This is quite a wine. Complex, shapely, fragrant. I can't decide if the oak is too prominent; I do know that its character complements the fruit exceptionally well, even if balance is arguably compromised. It is drinking very well now.
Update: drinking well on evening two, oak stepping back into the overall shape of the wine. One criticism I might make is that the whole remains hazy and never quite resolves to the level of clarity I would ultimately like. Still, a delicious wine.
Domaine Anne et Hervé Sigaut
Price: $A69
Closure: Cork
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