Previously Métier
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91
2021 Le Dessein
Based on 43% Mourvèdre, 39% Grenache, and the rest Syrah, the 2021 Le Dessein is a sweetly fruited, peppery, savory herb, and smoky red and black-fruited red with medium to full-bodied richness. I like its tannins, it’s balanced, and it has a great finish.
Jeb Dunnuck | Jun 2023 | jebdunnuck.COM
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94
2020 Le Dessein
A blend of 44% Mourvedre, 36% Grenache, and 20% Syrah, the 2020 Le Dessein used to be named Le Métier, is aged in large format neutral French oak barrels for approximately 15 months. Showcasing a shimmering deep purple-colored core with a blueish rim, it’s stunning in the glass. Starting off with some strawberry fruit leather, black cherry, and barbecue beef tones, it progresses with some lovely Mouvedre qualities of black pepper and tomato leaf. The finish is balanced and luscious, ending with a touch of wild blueberry and orange caramel.
Jeremy Young | Sep 2022 | International Wine Report
93
2020 Le Dessein
This is a blend of Mourvèdre (44%), Grenache (36%), and Syrah. Aromas of pot roast, raspberry, ground black pepper, and fresh herb are followed by deft, forward, medium-plus bodied red fruit flavors. It’s captivating, with the feel bringing as much appeal as the flavors. Pair it with spice-rubbed lamb shank. 14.5% alcohol. Natural cork. Critic’s Choice
Sean P. Sullivan | Jun 2023 | Northwest Wine Report
90
2020 Le Dessein
Based on 44% Mourvèdre, 36% Grenache, and the rest Syrah, the 2020 Le Dessein has a meaty, medium-bodied, juicy style as well as both red and black fruits, some peppery, herbal, meaty nuances, high acidity, and a good finish. Well-made, this firmer, focused, slightly angular 2020 will benefit from 2-3 years of bottle age and keep through 2030.
Jeb Dunnuck | Jun 2023 | jebdunnuck.COM
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91
2018 Métier
Full of Mourvedre character (which makes up half the blend with grenache, syrah, and a dollop of cinsault), this wine imparts flavors of dried strawberries and dark red cherries with a mild florality. There’s plenty of dry extract and grippy, meaty savor, with a delightful peppery finish for lamb.
Patrick J. Comiskey | Dec 2021 | WINE & SPIRITS
94
2019 Métier
The 2019 Métier is a gorgeous blend of 42% Grenache and Mourvèdre (36%) with smaller parts Syrah and Cinsault. The garrigue notes are gorgeous, and bright red cherry and cigar box tones mingle with black olive on the nose. The palate shows good freshness, a soft mouthfeel and a light dusting of salinity. Layers of ripe red and dark fruits parade with stony and earthy tones, sagebrush and creosote. This just fantastic Rhône-inspired wine for the price.
Owen Bargreen | Mar 2022 | VINOUS
91
2019 Métier
Grenache makes up 42% of this wine, with the rest Mourvèdre (36%), Syrah (20%) and a pinch of Cinsault. The aromas rise up from the glass, with notes of blueberry, huckleberry, fresh herbs, raspberry, black pepper and moist earth. The palate is light on its feet, showing elegance and dexterity.
Sean P. Sullivan | Oct 2021 | WINE ENTHUSIAST
93
2019 Métier
The 2019 ‘Metier’ is a gorgeous blend of 42% Grenache and Mourvedre (36%) with smaller parts Syrah and Cinsault. The garrigue notes are gorgeous as bright red cherry and cigar box tones mingle with black olive that mingle on the nose. The palate shows good freshness with a great sense of mouthfeel. Layers of ripe red and dark fruits parade with stony and earthy tones, with sagebrush and creosote tones. This fantastic wine for the price. Drink 2021-2028
OWEN BARGREEN | APR 2021 | OWENBARGREEN.COM
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94
2018 Métier
Blackberry and tar with some spice on the nose. Bark, too. Full-to medium-bodied with round, juicy tannins and a flavorful finish. Rather creamy and delicious.
James Suckling | Jul 2021 | Jamessuckling.com
94
2018 Métier
Blackberry and tar with some spice on the nose. Bark, too. Full-to medium-bodied with round, juicy tannins and a flavorful finish. Rather creamy and delicious. 50% mourvedre, 28% grenache, 20% syrah and 2% cinsault. Drink now or hold.
James Suckling | June 2021 | Jamessuckling.COM
92
2018 Métier
A blend of mourvedre, grenache and syrah, Metier is notably bright for a DeLille wine, a red strawberry and red cherry core of fruit that suggest that the grenache is leading the charge. The oak is a presence for now; give the wine some cellar time to knit.
Patrick J. Comiskey | Feb 2021 | WINE & SPIRITS
92
2018 Métier
Good dark red. Expressive aromas of raspberry, strawberry, fennel, licorice and peppery herbs, along with a faint suggestion of cured meats. Smooth and suave but firm on entry, offering lovely density and energy to its red berry, spice and lavender flavors. Finishes with very fine-grained tannins and rising floral/herbal persistence. Still very youthful and built to expand with bottle aging, but smooth and flavorful right now. This struck me as a bit more brisk than the 2017.
Stephen Tanzer | Dec 2020 | VINOUS
92
2018 Métier
This delicious wine is a blend of Mourvèdre (50%), Grenache (28%), Syrah (20%) and Cinsault. The aromas bring notes of iron, earth, dried herb, flower and berry. The palate is pure, rich unadulterated hedonism, with superb length.
Sean P. Sullivan | Dec 2020 | WINE ENTHUSIAST
90
2018 Métier
With a classic ruby center, the 2018 Metier is a blend of 39% Grenache, 39% Mourvedre, 19% Syrah and 3% Cinsault. The wine is expressive and opens to a nose full of dusty red fruit and subtle black spices with hints of dusty cherry skin, licorice and baked earth. Medium to full-bodied, it has a youthful and energetic appeal across the mid-palate before showing soft flavors of dried herbs and potpourri on the lingering finish. I see this being a crowd-pleaser to anyone who likes CDP. The wine fermented in stainless steel and aged for 16 months in neutral French oak.
Anthony Mueller | Oct 2020 | THE WINE ADVOCATE
93
2018 Métier
The 2018 ‘Metier’ Red Wine is a thrilling new Rhone style release by superstar winemaker Jason Gorski. A blend of mostly Mourvedre (50%) with smaller portions Grenache, Syrah, Syah and a touch of Cinsault, this reveals smoked brisket and red cherry candy with Provenceale herbs on the nose. The palate is plush, showing off its silky texture. Very pretty guava preserves mingle with roasted dates, blackberry compote, smoke, cigar box and dried herbs on the palate. The 2018 ‘Metier’ captures the art of blending as this fantastic new wine will cellar well over the next decade. Drink 2020-2030
OWEN BARGREEN | Sep 2020 | OWENBARGREEN.COM
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92
2017 Métier
Healthy moderately saturated dark red. Raspberry, strawberry and red licorice aromas convey a slightly high-toned candied quality in a positive way. Silky, nicely concentrated, graceful blend with lovely sweetness and a light touch to its wild red berry, spice and floral flavors. Wonderfully lively, fine-grained but firm wine with noteworthy complexity, smooth ripe tannins and sneaky persistence.
Stephen Tanzer | Dec 2020 | VINOUS
92
2017 MÉTIER
Healthy moderately saturated dark red. Raspberry, strawberry and red licorice aromas convey a slightly high-toned candied quality in a positive way. Silky, nicely concentrated, graceful blend with lovely sweetness and a light touch to its wild red berry, spice and floral flavors. Wonderfully lively, fine-grained but firm wine with noteworthy complexity, smooth ripe tannins and sneaky persistence. (This wine included the Grenache fruit that was used to make a separate varietal bottling in 2016.) Perhaps not quite the structure of the ’16 version but I’m splitting hairs. (14.5% alcohol; vinified in small stainless steel fermenters, then aged in neutral oak)
Stephen Tanzer | Dec 2019 | Vinous.COM
90
2017 Métier
Lots of darker red and black berry fruits as well as notes of peppery meat and spice emerge from the 2017 Metier. It’s medium-bodied and has silky tannins, outstanding balance, and an already upfront, charming, undeniably delicious style. A Rhone-like blend of Grenache, Mourvèdre, and Cinsault, this cuvée ages gracefully, and the 2017 will keep for at least a decade.
Jeb Dunnuck | Apr 20 | jebdunnuck.COM
2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005
92
2016 Métier
The Southern Rhône blend is the 2016 Metier, which is 42% Grenache and 36% Mourvèdre, with the balance Cinsault. Violets, peppery spice, cedar, and sweet black raspberry fruits all emerge from the glass and it’s ripe, rounded, and medium to full-bodied on the palate. There’s some subtle background oak, but this is upfront and ready to go.
Jeb Dunnuck | Apr 2019 | jebdunnuck.COM
92
2016 Métier
(made in a high percentage of large-format oak, with none of the casks younger than four years old; Beaucastel is the model for this wine, according to winemaker Gorski): Dark red with ruby highlights. Aromas of blackberry, licorice and tree bark, plus a spicy nuance. Combines compelling spicy intensity and serious thickness of texture, with its red berry and spice flavors showing virtually no greenness. Concentrated, broad, rich and long, finishing with substantial dusty tannins. Incidentally, the team did not make this wine with whole clusters. “We don’t like stems, but we did include some in our 2016 Syrah,” noted Gorski.
Stephen Tanzer | Jul 2018 | Vinous.COM
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93
2015 Métier
Bright, dark red. Brambly red berries, crushed cherry, spices and hints of smoked meat and herbs on the nose. Plush, sappy and utterly seamless, conveying a creaminess of texture to the flavors of dried red berries, cherry and tree bark firmed by underlying minerality. Really terrific flavor intensity here without any heaviness or phenolic roughness. The pH is “3.8 at the most,” according to winemaker Chris Upchurch, and the very long finish is lifted by a pungent note of pomegranate.
STEPHEN TANZER | JUL 2017 | VINOUS.COM
92
2015 Métier
Two-thirds of this grenache-syrah-mourvedre blend comes from Ciel du Cheval on Red Mountain, with the balance from the Boushey and Stone Tree vineyards. The fruit from Red Mountain surely accounts for the density of the wine, the dark, feral tannins and the dark blue core of fruit within while the cool fruit from Boushey seems to give it elegance and lift. For lamb stew. (800 cases)
Feb 2019 | WINE & SPIRITS
90
2015 Métier
Refined and well-structured, with focused smoked cherry, licorice and peppered meat flavors. Mourvèdre, Grenache, Syrah and Cinsault. Drink now through 2023. 800 cases made.
TIM FISH | Aug 2018 | WINE SPECTATOR
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92
2014 Métier
A final blend of 40% Mourvedre, 37% Grenache, 19% Syrah and the balance Cinsault, the 2014 Metier is beautiful, with a voluptuous, rich yet still graceful and lively style. Offering up lots of raspberry, spice, herbes de Provence and licorice aromatics, this medium to full-bodied beauty is impeccably balanced, has no hard edges and a great finish. I’d happily drink bottles over the coming 6-7 years, and I certainly wouldn’t be surprised to see it keep longer.
JEB DUNNUCK | JUN 2017 | 231, THE WINE ADVOCATE
92
2014 Métier
(no new oak; this wine was previously called Doyenne Metier Red Wine): Moderately saturated medium red-ruby. Cherry and flowers on the nose, plus some suggestions of exotic fruits. Suave, creamy and complex. offering impressive palate presence to the flavors of purple fruits, violet, tree bark and pungent pepper. The small Cinsault component helped to lower this wine’s alcohol level, noted winemaker Chris Upchurch, but it’s still a lofty 15.3%. Finishes with very suave tannins, lovely balance and excellent length.
STEPHEN TANZER | JUL 2016 | VINOUS.COM
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92
2013 Métier
I loved the 2013 Doyenne Metier Proprietary Red Blend, and this mix of 39% Mourvedre, 36% Grenache and the rest Cinsault offers ripe, textured, downright sexy notes of ripe black cherries, ground herbs, melted licorice and caramelized meats to go with a full-bodied, concentrated, unctuous style on the palate. Beautifully concentrated, textured and with solid underlying structure, it should continue to drink beautifully through 2025.
JEB DUNNUCK | JUN 2016 | 225, THE WINE ADVOCATE
91
2013 Métier
Good dark red. Sexy, sappy aromas of raspberry syrup, licorice and wild herbs. A fat fruit bomb of raspberry, strawberry and boysenberry, complicated by clove and meaty nuances. A wonderfully plush, broad, dry blend with a slightly liqueur-like ripeness that lends itself to early consumption. Spreads out horizontal on the lingering, ripely tannic back end.
Stephen Tanzer | Jul 2015 | Vinous.com
2020 |2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005
93
2012 Métier
(a southern Rhone blend of 39% each Grenache and Mourvedre, 20% Syrah and 2% cinsault): Bright ruby. High-toned aromas of blackberry, wildflowers and Moroccan spices. Juicy, fine-grained and light on its feet, conveying wonderfully perfumed flavors of blackberry, wild herbs and flowers, cumin and black olive. Really explosive fruit here, extended by lively acidity through a long, floral finish. This beautifully balanced wine combines Old World savoir faire with New World fruit intensity.
STEPHEN TANZER | DEC 2014 | VINOUS.COM
92
2012 Métier
The estate’s Southern Rhone-style release, the 2012 Doyenne Metier Proprietary Red Blend is 39% Grenache, 39% Mourvedre, 20% Syrah and the rest Cinsault. Deep ruby and mostly opaque, it offers up classic black cherries, black raspberries, roasted herbs, pepper and hints of leather to go with a medium to full-bodied, ripe, layered and balanced feel on the palate. Possessing more than a passing resemblance to a quality Chateauneuf du Pape, this is a great Rhone blend from Washington.
JEB DUNNUCK | JUN 2015 | 219, THE WINE ADVOCATE
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92
2011 Métier
(40% grenache, 35% mourvedre and 25% syrah; fermented in stainless steel and aged in neutral French oak): Good deep red. Captivating aromas of strawberry leaf, cherry and blood orange. Supple and smooth on the palate, with superb texture and depth to the slightly high-toned flavors of red fruits, spices and orange. Boasts terrific lift and spine for a southern Rhone blend. Finishes generous and long, with a complicating saline quality.
STEPHEN TANZER | NOV 2013 | VINOUS.COM
91
2011 Métier
Looking at their Doyenne releases (i.e. their Rhone blends), the 2011 Doyenne Metier is a mix of 40% Grenache, 35% Mourvedre and 25% Syrah that offers up a Cotes du Rhone-like bouquet of garrigue, licorice, kirsch and assorted spices to go with a medium to full-bodied, supple and layered profile on the palate. Up-front and ready-to-go, enjoy this outstanding blend over the coming 5 – 6 years.
JEB DUNNUCK | JUN 2014 | 213, THE WINE ADVOCATE
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92
2010 Métier
Starting the reds, the 2010 Doyenne Metier is a blend of 40% Grenache, 40% Mourvedre and 20% Syrah that saw mostly (75%) neutral oak. Coming from the Boushey and Ciel du Cheval Vineyards, it offers up a knockout bouquet of ripe red and black berry fruits, licorice, roasted meats and hints of graphite to go with a full-bodied, voluptuously textured mouthfeel that keeps you coming back to the glass. Decadently styled, yet also pure, balanced and fresh, it should impress for 7-8 years. Drink now-2021.
Jeb Dunnuck | Jun 2013 | 207, The Wine Advocate
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92
2009 Métier
(a blend of grenache, syrah and mourvedre: “our Chateauneuf du Pape blend,” notes executive winemaker/partner Chris Upchurch): Bright dark red. Spicy red berries, cherry and rose petal on the nose. Sweet, plush and pliant, with bright candied red berry and floral flavors complicated by spices and earth. This rich, highly aromatic wine finishes very long, with tannins that are virtually invisible.
Stephen Tanzer | Nov 2011 | Vinous.com
91
2009 Métier
The estate’s southern Rhône release and a blend of 51% Grenache, 32% Mourvedre, and 17% Syrah, the 2009 DeLille Cellars Doyenne Métier Red shows outstanding Grenache flair, with wild strawberry, spice, bramble, Provencal herbs, and earthy scents flowing to a medium to full-bodied, supple, and polished red that has excellent richness, yet stays light and clean on the palate. Straight up delicious and oh so drinkable, it should be enjoyed over the coming 4-6 years.
Jeb Dunnuck | Jun 2012 | jebdunnuck.com
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92
2008 Métier
(40% each grenache and mourvedre with 20% syrah) Bright, full ruby-red. Expressive nose combines blackberry, black cherry, licorice, black pepper and flint. Sweet, lush and silky but with integrated acidity and a piquant pomegranate flavor giving verve to this generous wine. Best today on the vibrant finish, which features crushed berries and lovely floral lift.
STEPHEN TANZER | NOV 2010 | VINOUS.COM
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92
2007 Métier
The 2007 Metier is a blend of Mourvedre, Grenache, and Syrah produced from 80% Red Mountain fruit and aged in seasoned oak. Aromas of underbrush, damp earth, brier, cherry, plum, and blueberry lead to a savory, ripe, fruit-driven offering with plenty of grip and length. It can be enjoyed now and over the next 6-8 years.
Jay S Miller | Aug 2010 | 190, The Wine Advocate
92
2007 Métier
(50% mourvedre, 33% grenache and 17% syrah) Good deep red-ruby. Superripe plum and raspberry aromas complicated by a tarry nuance. Rich, ripe and pliant, with a slightly wild earth and rust character to the strawberry and spice flavors. This very full blend finishes with ripe tannins and excellent length. This wine contained only 25% mourvedre in 2006 and is now “more Southern Rhone in style,” notes assistant winemaker Chris Peterson. This impression may have been accentuated in this 2007 by the fact that no new oak was used.
STEPHEN TANZER | NOV 2009 | VINOUS.COM
91
2007 Métier
An interesting blend of 50% Mourvèdre, 33% Grenache and 17% Syrah, the 2007 DeLille Cellars Doyenne Métier Red possesses a deep, opaque color as well as full notes of black cherry, fresh earth, meat and hot asphalt on the nose. The Mourvèdre is front and center and the wine has a full, meaty character. This is impressive on the palate and shows a solid, full mid-palate, sweet fruit, fresh acids and a long, focused finish. Ripe and structured, this should drink well over the next 10 to 12 years.
Jeb Dunnuck | may 2010 | jebdunnuck.COM
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92
2006 Métier
The 2006 Metier, a blend of 40% Grenache, 40% Mourvedre, and 20% Syrah sourced primarily from the Red Mountain AVA. Doyenne’s version of Chateauneuf du Pape is deep crimson-colored with a superb nose of cinnamon, sage, incense, strawberry, rhubarb, and cherry. Smooth textured and layered on the palate, it has plenty of lively acidity, sweet fruit, and a plush, elegant personality. It is meant to be enjoyed over the next 8-10 years.
Jay S Miller | Oct 2009 | 185, The Wine Advocate
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91
2005 Métier
A delicious, sexy blend of 50% Grenache, 25% Syrah, and 25% Mourvedre, the 2005 Metier Red Mountain boasts a deep ruby/purple hue along with notes of blueberries, black cherries, camphor, meat, roasted herbs, and a touch of anise. It is a sensual, medium to full-bodied red with a velvety texture, and a voluptuous finish. This stunning wine will be exceptionally food-friendly if consumed over the next 4-5 years.