The 2010 Cotes du Rhone-Villages Rasteau La Ponce (80% Grenache and 20% Syrah) exhibits a deep purple color along with a big, sweet kiss of chocolate-infused blackberries and kirsch, Provencal garrigue and licorice. This pure, big, masculine Rasteau has not lost the 2010 hallmarks of elegance and precision. Drink it over the next decade. With 160 acres of vines, most of them planted on hillsides in Rasteau, this is a serious estate that remains somewhat under the radar. It is run by Gilles Ferran, who graduated first in his class at the University of Montpellier's School of Oenology (the number two graduate that year was his best friend, Philippe Cambie, who now consults at Escaravailles). Importer: Jeff Welburn Selections, New York, NY; tel: (212) 247-2252; www.jeffwelburn.com