Robert Gilliard – Diolinoir 2013 – Valais

Medium deep ruby core, still fairly youthful. Clean nose, still with mostly primary fruit. Good mix of crushed red and dark berries, some dry spices like clove, cardamom, pepper. Not a lot of oak. Nice palate, keeps within that medium-bodied frame, quite loose structure, not much tannin. Rather rounded, with good fluidity, good juice. Good ripeness, but still with a well-preserved freshness in terms of acidity, and perfectly integrated tannin. Quite soft and supple style, still with good length, there’s good bite on the finish; those red & dark berries, with that added spiciness of nutmeg, clove, and pepper. Well balanced, very juicy and attractive.

Tasted by the Best Sommelier of the World, Andreas Larsson.