I was just in Eze last month. Very cool little town. St. Paul de Vence is another slightly larger walled town that I would definitely recommend if you like Eze. It is not very far away.
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I always wonder why no one seems able to imitate or even approximate what Rayas does, given the rewards for doing so…
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I truly hate to pile on but this is a tremendous story about a great wine, enjoyed with loved ones on a very special trip. THIS is the type of post that keeps me in love with wine, how special it can be.
Well done, Alfert, as always.
(shudders in anticipation of his head getting EVEN bigger)
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Commando G off the top of my head in Spain.
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Need to try the upper-end bottlings. I ate at Gresco in Barcelona on Fu’s reco, and went with his additional reco of the Commando G. It’s their lower-end bottling - cannot recall the name - but that nose is definitely within that same vein. Super-aromatic, very complex nose. The acids on this wine are too high to compare the palate to Rayas - not even close to the same balance - but I dig high acid reds so worked for me quite well.
Back to the question, Charvin is my CDP of choice. Not at the Rayas level but hits some of the same notes on aromatics, balance, elegance.
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I started a thread on exactly this topic a while back and got some great answers: Why is Rayas so singular?
I also need to try the higher-echelon Comando G offerings.
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Commando G sounds like a porn star name…
One m in Comando G, not suitable for special ops.
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Spoke to a winemaker who said “nobody should be allowed to make wine from Grenache”. Maybe Rayas would change his mind? 
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Never had Rayas but I’ve had Fonselatte in both Grenache and Syrah and they have been singular special wines that are exemplars of their heritage.
Sorry, take it back, 2004 Rayas with Ashish and Ralph Earle: TN: Honolulu Offline - Pierre Peters, Prum, Allemand, Rayas
Yes, the wines are great.
There are cognoscenti on this board - @Keith_Levenberg for example - who profess to dislike the grape. Keith, thoughts on Rayas? The Fonsalette Syrah Cuvee? I love that Cuvee.
A special moment with your son. Wonderful stuff Robert.
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Some wines made from vineyards in the Northern part of the appelation–for my money Charvin, Ferrand and Chappelle St. Theodoric–have some of the floral perfume of Rayas. None of them would ever be mistaken for it, though. But it’s the same with Reynaud’s Vacqueyras and Cotes de Rhone. I don’t know what he does, or what his uncle did. Maybe they all made a deal with the devil. But, while others have terroir appreciably like theirs, no one quite makes their wines. I’ve never tried Commando G, though.
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Jonathan, I’m in Antibes right now. Incredible wine stores here. One gets a small annual allocation of Rayas. He commented on the terroir, said there is no comparison and will not be another Rayas. You could tell this wine was singular to him. Was very animated about it. Told me he keeps three bottles to himself every year, and only his long-standing clients get some. And the price to him was shockingly low.
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You need to be looking for burgs there; can find amazing deals! Then bring them back here and trade for rayas or Ovid or whatever 
The store that I am in has very fancy Burgundies, including La Tache. There was a British guy that was trying to take pictures of all of the DRC bottles, the owner asked him not to do that. They also have that 1965 Armagnac that I had a few nights ago. Likely gonna get that.
I’ve had Rayas that taste as Burgundian as grenache can be and thus profound, but I’ve also had Rayas that taste like prune juice. And perhaps even more of the latter than the former. The highest and best use of grenache is obviously in Rioja.
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Wow, I find very little similarity, as, while I, also, favor Charvin for CDP, find it quite typical of the region in all ways, whereas Rayas is entirely unique.
I went through a bunch of '08 Charvin, found it enjoyable, herbal, light fruited, relatively low abv, but nothing at all like Rayas, so I’m definitely curious which of the vintages you’ve had that give you ANY hint of the great Rayas, so I can try them
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if only he brought his Wine Check???
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Looks at Jonathan’s post above, same thought-process. The 04 and 05 come to mind. I’ve had a couple bottles of each over the past 2 years or so. Go toward the less ripe vintages, not stuff like 09, 15 and 18. And yes, Rayas is singular, but I’m just saying, Charvin can be more aromatic and red spectrum than most.