Chateau Ste. Michelle, Tenet The Convert, 2017

This exceptionally smooth and elegant wine has aromas of ripe cherry and plum, complemented by earthy undercurrents of smoked cacao and spicy cola.  Silky-soft on the palate, it has flavours of cherry, blackberry and vanilla, which glide into a long, satiny finish.  Tenet is a collaboration between famed Rhône Valley names, Michel Gassier and and Philippe Cambie, along with Columbia Valley's Chateau Ste Michelle.  Plenty of leaf canopy is kept on the vines, so that the fruit ripens gently in dappled shade, for a fresher, more elegant style of wine.  These attributes are emphasised by whole-bunch fermentation, long, gentle maceration and maturation in larger casks, producing wine of great finesse.