Barruol’s 2005 St.-Joseph is very much in keeping with the firm, closed, austere style of the vintage. Coming from the hillsides of Sereine, one of the best subsections of St.-Joseph, the wine has high tannins, a dark ruby/purple color, good, pure fruit, but is incredibly backward and will require patience. The brilliant young Louis Barruol continues to augment his impressive negociant line of wines from the northern Rhone as well as his handful of southern Rhones (see my reviews of his Cotes du Rhones and Chateauneuf du Papes in Issue 173), while also concentrating on the fabulous estate wines from Gigondas, among the best two or three wines of the appellation. Barruol represents all that is good that is happening in France and other countries – a young man taking over for his parents and revolutionizing what was being done, cutting yields, cleaning up the cellars, and looking at how to make the most expressive wines possible from not only Gigondas, but from purchased fruit and wine. He loves Chateauneuf du Pape, and I hope one day he is able to earn enough money to buy a vineyard there. He is certainly a skilled winemaker. As for his northern Rhones, he consistently does a fabulous job with Cote Rotie. Using 100% stems, he gets none of the vegetal character that can come from stem use. As Barruol says, the 2006s are wines of great charm, seductiveness, and beautiful fruit, with freshness and vibrancy, whereas 2005 represents density, structure, tannin, and a certain austerity. To Barruol’s credit, I taste through 60-70 domaines in Gigondas, and his wines, along with Yves Gras’ at Santa Duc, were among the finest. Importer:A Patrick Lesec Selection; Agent for the U.S. market: Chemin des Vins, Sherborn, MA; tel. (508) 545-1532