From Grenache with a bit of Carignan and roughly one-third matured in larger cask, the Bila-Haut 2009 Cotes du Roussillon-Villages Lesquerde L'Esquerda is grown on granitic soil in the town - high up above the Agly and west of Maury - for which it is named, and where Chapoutier has taken-on considerable acreage. Due to have been bottled in May, it is redolent of fennel, bracken, arbor vitae, and cinnamon behind which well-up ripe purple plum and blueberry that lusciously saturate the palate. Low-toned suggestions of carob and walnut add counterpoint to the herbal and fruit intensity exhibited in a strong, penetrating finish. This ought to prove versatile over at least the next 4-5 years. Michel Chapoutier's Roussillon domaine - for further details on which, consult my report in issue 183 - has taken on considerable additional acreage since I filed that last report, resulting in among other things a fascinating white cuvee in what had previously been an all-red portfolio, and the inclusion of more fruit - in black as well as white - from spectacularly-situated high-elevation, granite-rich, late-ripening sites in Lesquerde, well to the west of Latour-de-France. Gilles Troullier continues to direct vinification as well as viticulture (here biodynamic) like the seasoned maestro that he is. With few exceptions, the wines sing with clarity, purity, and complexity, not to mention performing well above what on the basis of price (save for that of the "v.i.t." cuvee) would deceptively appear to be their station. (For Chapoutier's wines from Banyuls, see under his own name in this report, as that is how those are labeled.)Importer: H. B. Wine Merchants, New York, NY; tel. (917) 402-0456