Sourced from the oldest known Mourvedre vines on the planet, this Hewitson Old Garden Mourvedre 2019 is not just a relic, it’s a pretty serious drink.

Huge heavy bottle. Too big, but I guess it adds gravitas. It’s molten and meaty, slightly sweet and sour, but oh so mysterious and dark and uncompromising. Power of suggestion, sure, but the complexity that these ancient vines provideds is riven through the wine, with the cocoa powder etched licorice fruit melded to old leather, molasses and leaf litter. Untold depths. It’s still ripe, though, and hard to shake the notion that this would probably make iconic vintage fortified. Anyway, that resonating palate gets this a gold, even if it feels a bit uncompromising and dark.

Best drinking: good now, will probably get even more richer, rounder, meatier and more complex, even if it might not get ‘better’. 18.5/20, 94/100. 14%, $88. Hewitson website. Would I buy it? A glass or two.