Brought up in foudre, amphora, and some new puncheons, the 2016 Broken Stones offers a deep, full-bodied, quintessential Paso Robles style that carries plenty of freshness and acidity, notes of black and blue fruits, smoked meats, violets, and ground pepper, polished tannins, and a monster of a finish. A blend of 51% Syrah, 17% Mourvèdre, 13% Grenache, and the rest Tempranillo, Petite Sirah, and Roussanne, it’s going to benefit from 2-3 years of bottle age and cruise for 15 years or more.

A blend of 52% Syrah, 18% Mataro, 10% Grenache, 10% Tempranillo, 8% Petite Sirah and 2% Roussanne, the 2016 Broken Stones (which will be bottled later this year) offers up brooding aromas of grilled meat and smoky black fruits. On the palate, it's full-bodied and very powerful, with sweet tannins, considerable concentration and chewy extract, and there's a long, stony finish. This cuvée used to see mainly new oak, but the 2016 is being matured in 51% new puncheons, 32% foudre and 13% amphora, with the balance in used wood. Perhaps that's why this vintage has all the power and amplitude that readers will have come to expect from Broken Stones but also more tension and precision.