E. Guigal : Ex Voto 2022

The 2022 Ermitage Ex Voto is riper and more solar than the La-La cuvées (La Turque, La Mouline and La Landonne), which is to be expected given the south-facing exposure of the Hermitage hill. Evoking aromas of baked dark berries, licorice, thyme, tobacco leaf and oak, it is full-bodied, deep and concentrated, with a structured, seamless mid-palate, a fleshy core of fruit and powerful tannins that carry it to a long, spicy finish. While unmistakably shaped by the warmth of the vintage, it retains impressive depth and authority and should evolve gracefully with time in the cellar.

Exuberant, the fruit really jumps out of the glass before the oak. Star anise, incense, very full-bodied but fresh and powerfully fruited. It's swallowed its oak particularly well so far, though it's only at the start of its long barrel maturation. Good tension, concentration and intensity, this appears to be a particularly fine vintage of Ex Voto.