Tunnel Cornas 19

2019 was the fifth consecutive excellent vintage in the Northern Rhône. Like 2018, it was hot and dry, but unlike 2018, the grapes developed thick skins and less juice. This reduced yields but offered the promise of higher quality in 2019 if the fruit was handled right.

Tunnel’s wines are pure, inky syrah — a blend of Northern spiciness (think Bonnefond’s Côte Rôties) and southern sun. Josh Raynolds of Vinous awarded 92-94 points, finding the 2019 Cornas “in a juicy, fruit-driven style, offering appealingly sweet cherry, blackberry and cassis flavors;” and its finish “very long and smooth, with just a hint of fine-grained tannins and persistent spiciness.”