New Vintage of Our Founder's Favorite Red!
Our founder has used the Saint Cosme Côtes du Rhône as his house red for over a decade. Why would a man with over 65 years in the industry be so passionate about a wine that sells for under fifteen bucks? The answer is simple. It tastes good!
Bud Schwarzbach founded Vin Chicago with the philosophy that wine doesn't need to be expensive to be exceptional. Louis Barruol's Saint Cosme Côtes du Rhône is a picture perfect demonstration of this fact.
Today, we bring you the 2024 vintage of his delicious, beautifully versatile red. To no surprise, it is another big winner. And, quite amazingly, it still sells for under 15 bucks!
Read on for the details, including glowing reviews from Wine Spectator, Jeb Dunnuck and Vinous, than hit that Big Green Button to stock up!
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2024 Saint Cosme Côtes-du-Rhône
Southern Rhône Valley, France
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Louis Barruol has long been regarded as one of the Rhône Valley's finest winemakers. His family estate has been around for over 500 years. When he visited Bud a few months ago at our Elston Avenue store, it was the meeting of two kindred spirits!
With gorgeous notes of blackcurrant, wild raspberry, blueberry and plum bursting from the glass, the 2024 Saint Cosme Côtes du Rhône is a quintessential Rhône red that you can drink all year round.
Crafted entirely from Syrah, it is expressive both on the nose and palate, revealing itself further after an hour of opening with notes of savory black pepper, herbs and violets. Fermented and matured in concrete tank, there is a wonderful freshness and purity to the wine that makes you come back quickly for another sip. We love it, and it seems that so does everyone else...
“Dark, inky and nicely unadorned, with violet and fresh blackberry showing real purity and freshness. Ripe and weighty, offering velvety tannins that guide the chalky, smooth finish, flecked with fleur de sel, garrigue and licorice root. Solid and vibrant. Drink now through 2028. 27,000 cases imported.”
- 90 Points, Wine Spectator (11/24/2025)
“Rocking stuff, the 2024 Côtes du Rhône offers peppery red and black fruits, spice, and beautiful minerality. It's medium-bodied, fresh, focused, and balanced, with the pure, focused, graceful style of the vintage. Drink 2026-2030.
- 90 Points, Jeb Dunnuck (1/17/2026)
“A single-variety Syrah, the perfumed 2024 Côtes-du-Rhône unwinds with intense white pepper, ripe black cherry and wild herbs. Spicy and refined, the medium-bodied 2024 bundles notable varietal purity and clocks out with drive on the savory aftertaste. What a lovely Côtes-du-Rhône this is.”
- 90 Points, Vinous, Nicolas Greinacher (11/2025)
Whether it's with burgers fresh off the grill, a hearty lasagna, slow-cooked stew or a rib roast, this wonderfully versatile wine will be a hit. At $14.79, we can't think of another French red that delivers this much authenticity, character and sheer drinking pleasure!
Wine Spectator quotes $20. Median online retail is $18. This is a steal at either of those amounts. Our price makes it even better!
Vin Chicago Price: 14.79
Plus a 97-Point Beauty from Château de Beaucastel
2022 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Southern Rhône Valley, France
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This complex, powerful, and ageworthy blend of all 13 of the permitted varieties from the most iconic winery in the Southern Rhône is what Châteauneuf-du-Pape is all about!
"A dense, dark and brooding vintage of Beaucastel."
- Decanter Magazine, September 2023
It has been a while since we've featured the Perrin family's Château de Beaucastel, and we're glad to have it back. Lay a few bottles in your cellar and drink the Saint Cosme while you're waiting for it to reach maturity!
“A textured, layered, precise red, showcasing aromas of cherries, raspberries, warm herbs, bay leaves and baking spices. It’s medium- to full-bodied with silty, beautifully melted tannins. So integrated. Lively and focused, with plenty of energy and verve complementing the ripe red fruit and dried herbs. Intense stream of spices in the long, flavorful finish. From organically grown grapes. Try after 2027.”
- 97 Points, James Suckling (9/26/2024)
“The 2022 Châteauneuf Du Pape is some serious Provençal goodness, with just about overflowing aromas and flavors of sweet raspberries, blackberries, peppery garrigue, and Provençal spices. It has the sunny, expressive, complex style of the vintage, medium to full-bodied richness, ripe tannins, and a great finish. As with most 2022s, it has plenty of upfront charm yet solid underlying tannins as well. It reminds me slightly of the 2009 and will have two decades of longevity.”
- 95 Points, Jeb Dunnuck (10/29/2024)
“Dark and inky in colour this year. It’s fresh in its berry fruits, really quite powerful, with muscular tannins and driving acidity behind. A dense, dark and brooding vintage of Beaucastel. The aromatic precision however is extremely impressive: elderberry, sloe and blackberry. It’s solid and will age well. Do not drink this young, as it will likely disappoint if opened too early. Grenache and Cinsault fermented in cement, Syrah and Mourvèdre fermented in foudres. Syrah and Counoise are whole bunch fermented.”
- 96 Points, Decanter (9/17/2023)
Vin Chicago Price: 97.99
