Domaine A&E Verset, Cornas 2022

A benchmark Cornas from one of the appellation's most storied family names. Emmanuelle Verset — the sixth generation of her family to make wine, and the great-niece of the legendary Noël Verset — crafts this cuvée from five parcels at the heart of Cornas: Mazard, Champelrose, la Côte, les Côtes, and a slice of Reynard. The vines include heritage holdings passed down through her family, among them century-old plots planted on steep, east/southeast-facing granite.

100% Syrah, fully whole-cluster fermented over two weeks with traditional manual punch-downs and pump-overs, then aged 15 months in seasoned French oak (3–8 years old, 225–440L) — no new wood, in keeping with family tradition. The result is a wine of real depth and pedigree: a complex nose of blackberry and cherry laced with toast, smoke, and floral notes, framed on the palate by structured tannins and a vivid, lifting freshness.

Organically farmed, hand-tended, and made with obsessive attention to terroir transparency, this is Cornas in its purest, most authentic form. Drink with a long decant now, or cellar for a decade or more to watch it unfold.

Pairs beautifully with: braised short ribs, roasted duck, aged hard cheeses, or anything off the grill with a smoky char.