Domaine Anne Gros - Jean Paul Tollot 2012 Les Fontanilles Minervois 750ml

"The Gros-Tollot 2008 Minervois Les Fontanilles projects deep blackberry, blueberry, and mulberry fruit; roasted red meat; pungent herbs; and saliva inducing salinity. A deep suggestion of veal and beef marrow puts me in mind of certain of the best cru Beaujolais, while allusions to shrimp shell reduction further enhance the mouthwatering sense of umami this cuvee projects. Firm, tightly-stitched tannins allied to exuberant, infectious juiciness suggest a wine capable of performing well for the better part of a decade, and an opportunity to play around a bit at table with a bottle of this beauty revealed its versatility. Gros particularly likes the influence of the Cinsault in flavor, texture, and moderation of alcohol and says if she does some more planting on sandstone it will be of this variety. "The Grenache is a mistake," she says, laughing, in referring to its tendency to ripen at around 15% alcohol. But in fact, the finished Gros-Tollot blends nearly always weight in at only 13.5-14%."
-David Schildknecht, eRobertParker.com #195, 92 points