2017 Agly Brothers Côtes du Roussillon Villages 750 ml

Deep, brooding, sun-baked stunners from the South of France: We think of Châteauneuf-du-Pape mainstays like Château de Beaucastel and icons like Domaine Gauby—the kind of wines that reliably draw raves from Rhône expert Jeb Dunnuck, and are worth every penny of their $70 price tags.

That’s why we made sure to grab every bottle we could of the 2017 Agly Brothers Côtes du Roussillon Villages. Crafted by Rhône legend Michel Chapoutier—whose forty 100-point scores from The Wine Advocate make him one of the most decorated winemakers in the world—the heady mix of intense and brambly black-fruited aromas, stout structure, and powerful but plush mouthfeel are everything we look for in the best of the South of France.

Chapoutier is celebrated for turning top-notch Syrah into wines with power and elegance. He’s done it in his Northern Rhône home, he’s done it in Australia, and with Agly Brothers he and his partner Ron Laughton (of Jasper Hill in Victoria, Australia) are doing it in Roussillon. 

In the Agly Valley, where the rugged soils and harsh climate turn out especially compelling Syrah and Grenache, it’s possible to make reds that rival the best of the Rhône. For Agly Brothers, Chapoutier focuses on vines planted in the upper Agly Valley at about 800 feet of elevation. 

The vines are harvested by hand and the grapes are completely destemmed before fermentation in concrete tanks. A four-to-five-week maceration extracts gorgeous color before the wine is aged for 16–20 months in concrete tanks—not a hint of oak intrudes. 

One sip, and you’ll see why Michel Chapoutier couldn’t resist the Roussillon, and why we couldn’t resist claiming every bottle for our members.