Two Incredible St. Josephs from the Glory Bargain Pricing Days Before St. Joseph Became Famous - Under $30, One Has 91 Points

Knocking at the Door of the Big Boys (Gonon/Chave/Gripa) Quality-Wise at Half the Price

2016 Domaine Des Pierres Seches St. Joseph

 - From the Gonon School Stylistically

 - Olive, Game, Red Berry Fruit

 - Dense, But Refined

 - Easily Competes with $45+ St. Joseph

2017 Domaine des Pierres Seches St. Joseph Blanc

 - Northern Rhone Whites Are Among the Best Values in France

 - 91 Points from Vinuous

 - Honeysuckle, Peach, Pineapple, Apricot

 - Rich, But So Refined and Mineral

 - Amazingly Delicious, Complex, Balanced Wine for $29.99

St. Joseph is having a moment like no other wine region I can ever remember. When I first started out

in the business I had a good wine buddy and we used to make fun of St. Joseph. It was a running gag. What are we drinking tonight? Oh, St. Joseph. And we would both laugh. Because it was funny. St. Joseph was not considered anything special and there were no standout producers. It was a massive appellation and quality was okay to bad to putrid. But that all has changed now with Gonon as the big wave that has lifted all of the other top producers with him. 15 Gonon is about $100 if you can find it now. But we all now know what happens when a wine in an appellation gets priced high. All the wines in the wake get lifted and prices go up. There has been major major price escalation in St. Joseph these last 3-5 years. So to offer two insanely high quality wines today for $29.99 seems like a value compared to the days when my buddy and I made fun of St. Joseph. 

I've been working with Sylvain Gauthier since the beginning of Fass Selections.  I can't tell you how much of an honor it is for me that the Greek (the top retailer in the Northern Rhone) is now selling his wines at his store.  And Sylvain's wines have improved dramatically since we started working with him and I can honestly say that they are knocking at the door of the big boys (Gonon/Chave/Gripa) quality-wise at half the price.  The reds are so good and such crazy values, I know everyone will stock up.  He has a sense of refinement and authenticity to his wines now with thrilling fruit and also a super classic expression of St. Joseph. Please do not sleep on the white.  It has the fruit you'd expect from a Northern Rhone white but also the finesse and balance that is required for Fass Selections wines.  Please try at least a bottle. It did get a 91 from Josh Raynolds in Vinous. 

Up first is the 2016 Domaine Des Pierres Seches St. Joseph for $29.99 a bottle on a 4-pack. This is such a good deal I cannot even describe it. This is really where my direct to consumer model pays off. Young improving grower, great vintage and direct to consumer prices. This is easily worth $45+ a bottle. It is stunning in 2016. I was taken aback how great a wine this inexpensive can be. The style here is classic and is so similar in style to Gonon. I know I've compared many producers to Gonon but that is in terms of quality. Today it is in terms of style, although the quality is through the roof obviously as well. When I say classic I mean this is authentic as it gets with a structure that demands 2-3 years of aging in big vintages like 15 or 17, but in 16, which is more elegant and refined, it needs 1-2 years. It is something that will improve for 10+ years after that. And this is dense. It's amazing how dense Sylvain's 16's are. They are refined but also dense. This is a big, dense, complex and meaty wine with amazing sweet fruit and a big structured backbone that is also achingly refined, sleek and beautiful. Man the fruit is sweet and the nose has olive, game, red berry fruit - all you could ask for. It becomes more and more aromatic as it opens. Utterly classic and so traditional. The finish has ripe, toothsome tannins and a lovely granitic minerality. This is a baby now. It has uncanny freshness and depth and is just so pure and long. I cannot believe how well made this wine is. Truly an accomplishment - the more it opened the more it resembled a junior Gonon. I tasted at Gonon a few days before and I cannot even describe how similar these wines are. You'll have to see yourself.  For $29.99, this and the Desestret St. Joseph VV are the best value St. Josephs I'll sell.

Next up I have the debut vintage of the 2017 Domaine des Pierres Seches St. Joseph Blanc, ($29.99 each on 4) which is 100% Roussanne, and as many of you know this is a category I have been screaming about from the rooftops as it is neglected category and offers a great alternative to white burg and Riesling. The aromas are nuts and it starts with anise, herbs, custard even fresh baked bread, granite and is very wafting. So mineral as well and faint older wood aromas as this is in 5-6 year old barrels. The palate is insane and I'll use that word over and over again because that is 17 Northern Rhone whites. It has incredible richness, flavors of honeysuckle, peach, pineapple, apricot, yet all on a background of granitic minerality. It is so ridiculously complex. There are nutty and herbal elements that give to terrific impression of freshness and depth. Really, really terrific freshness to this wine. It's floral, funky and so mineral on the finish.  If there is one thing in 17, the wines all taste fresh yet still have the nuclear levels of fruit which is what 17 will go down in history for. This has a finish that does not quit. Just goes on and on and on. Waves into and becomes a part of your palate. It's a genius wine. It will drink well over the next 10 years.

This is the first white I have ever sold from Sylvain, but not from a lack of trying as his IGP Roussanne gets scarfed up by French people in the know. Maybe the best under $20 pure Roussanne in the world. The 2017 St. Joseph Blanc is also from the steep craggy cliffs of St. Epine and also contains a considerable amount of old vines. White St. Epine is very rare. This is more by the river and gets more breezy and it not in St. Epine proper. Not much but a bit more and a little wind can change things for the better.  2017 for Northern Rhone whites takes the best attributes of '15 (richness, power, concentration) and of '16 (acid, freshness and finesse) and adds some of the dramatic length and depth of '13. I might like 17 the best of the 3 vintages as they are just unreal wines with tension, purity, richness and depth. 

"Pale yellow. Vibrant and sharply focused on the nose, displaying fresh citrus and orchard fruit scents complemented by ginger and dusty mineral nuances. Sappy and incisive on the palate, offering juicy Meyer lemon and green apple flavors that become deeper with air. In a juicy, graceful style, carrying no excess fat. The strong, persistent finish echoes the citrus fruit and mineral notes." 91 PTS, JOSH RAYNOLDS, VINOUS

2016 Domaine des Pierres Seches (Sylvain Gauthier) St. Joseph Rouge - $31.99 ($119.96 4-pack) (LIMITED)

2017 Domaine des Pierres Seches (Sylvain Gauthier) St. Joseph Blanc - $31.99 ($119.96 4-pack) (LIMITED)