Agnés Levet's 2021 Chavaroche is the usual flamboyant and wildly aromatic joyride we've come to expect from this exuberant- yet fiercely traditional- cuvée. The 2021 growing season itself was quite similar to Burgundy's, with early frost damage yielding to a difficult flowering and a cooler, rather humid summer. In the end, only growers with old vines and well-drained soils produced great wines that harken back to an era of more aromatic expression and significantly lower alcohols. Chez Levet, old vines predominate and painstaking attention to detail in the vineyard is a given, so their 2021 Chavaroche is a must-have for any serious Côte-Rôtie aficionado. Vinification of this Côte Brune plot of barely 1.2 hectares is whole cluster, and élevage is done mostly in older barrels, as the idea is always to highlight the raspberry, bacon, bay laurel and black olive elements. As to be expected, the smaller harvest and over-the-top scores from the usual suspects in the wine press have caused the price to inch up a bit.