Let's get esoteric. The top 9 (could not think of 10) Esoteric French Red Wines that are great year in and year out.

One of my passions in wine is wine esoterica. Nothing better than drinking a wine from either a place you have never heard of or a grape you have never heard of and falling in love with it. It has happened to me countless times and I wanted to share my top 10 list of wonderful French red esoterica.

• Domaine du Cros Marcillac Vieilles Vignes - This is a wonderful estate located in SW France, where you have to be careful of producer because there is a whole lot of garbage being made down there. This is made from Mansois aka Fer Servadou and is leaps and bounds better than their regular cuvee. Not much old vine Fer Servadou out there and if there is please point me in the direction of one that is good as this for the price. It is wild, gamey, dense, ripe, tannic and has the structure to age for up to 15-20 years. Sensational old vine density and sappiness are also part of the package. The package costs usually between $16 and $18 a bottle. 

• Plageoles Gaillac "Duras" - Again, hailing from SW France, this is a killer bottle of wine, no matter what vintage. This is essentially black colored wine with the most insane expressive minerality ever. Big, rich and profoundly mineral. Buy it every year. For what it's worth, one of my favorite "natural" wine estates. This can be had for around $24 a bottle. 

• Thierry Richoux Irancy - I will be working with Thierry's wines for Fass Selections but have no qualms about adding them to this list. I tasted around 20 vintages of his stellar Irancy when I visited him this summer. Irancy is allowed to have Cesar, a very inferior local grape in it but Thierry's is 100% Pinot Noir. It used to be too cold up there to get ripeness every year, but even that did not stop Thierry from making stellar wines. Even in cooler vintages his Irancy was the kill. He is an outstanding winemaker and it shows. There are lots of red fruits but the minerality is what stands out in Thierry's wines. They have wonderful structure and a bit of a wild side. This will be around $18-$19 a bottle.

• Mas Julien Coteaux du Languedoc - I love love this wine. It used to be a steal at under $30 but the price has crept up to around $45 but for my money this is about as Grand Cru as the Languedoc comes. Always needing a major decant this wine is usually a blend of Carignan, Mourvedre, Cinsault, Syrah and Grenache. The grapes are a factor but this is a true "gout de terroir" wine. Big, ripe, so deep and with so much nuance and breeding one can forget they are drinking a Languedoc wine. Toothsome is maybe the perfect one word descriptor for this elixir. Age these babies as they are stunning with age. 

• Domaine Dupasquier Mondeuse - Up until I tasted multiple vintages of Dupasquier's spectacular Mondeuse, I always thought Mondeuse could be good in the Savoie, but just not great. I was wrong. Peillot is good, don't get me wrong, but Dupasquier has more of everything. The classic wild, brambly fruit, the stunning alpine minerality, tremendous depth and even elegance along with a great finish. It takes some time to open but when it does, get ready for a thrill a minute. Mondeuse at its best. Current vintage, 2009, goes for $24 a bottle. 

• Domaine Navarre St. Chinian "Cuvee Olivier" - So hard to pick one of Thierry's wines because they are all that great. It's the classic GSM blend, but this is no Rosemount here. Deep, minerally and brambly and needs much time in a decanter to be fully expressive. Worth the wait. Amazing texture and so mouth-coating. Only had 3 vintages but all have been brilliant. This can be had for between $20-$25.

• Maison Brulees (Michel Auge) Vin de Table "Le Herdeleau" - Had to get a Pineau d'Aunis in here but most I don't like. Then I remembered Auge has some Pineau d'Aunis in his Herdeleau blend and it had to be on the list. Pineau d'Aunis, Gamay and Pinot comprises the blend. It needs a decant to get rid of the fizz (natural wine!!) but once the fizz is gone this is deep, dark, rich wine with sick minerality and crazy elegance. On day 2 the fireworks really begin to happen. This is around $18-$20 a bottle. Stunning every year and more importantly getting better every year. 

• Thierry Puzelat "Rouge et Mis" - Pinot Meunier from the Loire Valley from one of the greatest winemakers on the planet. Yes please. I LOVE this wine with all my heart. So elegant, so unique, so unusual, a little brett but deep flavors, intense minerals, pretty pure fruit and gets better every year. 2008 and 2010 are particularly special. Not made every year but when it is grab it. Around $29-$35 a bottle.

• Eric Texier Cotes-du-Rhone St. Julien St. Alban Serine - A crazy delicious wine from a vineyard Eric found in the Ardeche that has not been zapped with fertilizers or chemicals. A rare find. As Eric says, "This is a traditional whole cluster syrah from decomposed granite in the Northern Rhone, bottled without sulphur. Period." Amazing texture and richness and just a stunning mouthfeel. Maybe my favorite wine from Eric at the moment. The current vintage (2010) is around $35 a bottle.