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 Vintage2009 Label 1 of 15 
TypeRed
ProducerChâteau Fontanès
VarietyCabernet Sauvignon
Designationles traverses de Fontanes
Vineyardn/a
CountryFrance
RegionLanguedoc Roussillon
SubRegionn/a
AppellationVin de Pays d'Oc
OptionsOnly show variety

Drinking Windows and Values
Drinking window: Drink between 2010 and 2013 (based on 4 user opinions)

Community Tasting History

Community Tasting Notes (average 87.3 pts. and median of 88 pts. in 30 notes) - hiding notes with no text

 Tasted by studleytrey on 9/28/2015 & rated 89 points: Hard to complain at $10 here. Dense, opaque coloring with ruby at the edges. Nose is a little tight, but some black fruit, flowers, and minerals can be coaxed. Medium body and acid, medium+ finish, and flavors of dark fruits and minerals on the palate. The persistence somewhat makes up for the lack of complexity. Worked just fine with hanger steak leftovers for lunch and pre-gaming for the G. Love & John Hammond show tonight. (2578 views)
 Tasted by Good Stuff on 7/9/2014 & rated 86 points: Probably not a terrific way to begin with but I drank it too late as there was no bouquet, the tannins had completely softened and within an hour there was no fruit left. (3039 views)
 Tasted by Good Stuff on 7/29/2013 & rated 89 points: Very fair value, pleasant bouquet, very consistent flavor through the taste, tannins present but not over powering, worked well with flank steak (3474 views)
 Tasted by wari on 4/7/2013 & rated 87 points: Solid QPR. (3633 views)
 Tasted by fCOT on 8/18/2012 & rated 88 points: deep black fruits with good texture but still with some green tannins on the finish.to revisit in a few months (4199 views)
 Tasted by wari on 7/29/2012 & rated 87 points: Wine was flowing through the cork before opening. (2224 views)
 Tasted by bechi on 7/2/2012 & rated 88 points: Holding well. No change from initial notes.
Considerable sediment; I REALLY need to remember to decant this. (1784 views)
 Tasted by Number51 on 5/8/2012 & rated 89 points: I like it at $10. A little bit of those Flinstones vitamins on the nose. (1513 views)
 Tasted by mdefreitas on 3/17/2012 & rated 89 points: Elegant, light and full of flavor. Herbal, in a good way, with lavender and garrigue. Good edgy food wine and went wonderfully with cassoulet. (922 views)
 Tasted by Number51 on 2/4/2012 & rated 88 points: Very enjoyable again at $10. (1572 views)
 Tasted by mdefreitas on 2/4/2012 & rated 89 points: I can see this wine polarizing people due to its overt herbal character. Loaded with lavendar, eucalyptus, green peppers, garrigue; but here is very good, cool-toned fruit, mostly currants. Nice structure and length. I enjoyed it quite a bit. Reminds me a bit of a Loire Valley Cab Franc in texture. Excellent QPR. (847 views)
 Tasted by maxmanx on 2/2/2012: OK on the first day, not good on the second. (1719 views)
 Tasted by greenwalter on 1/5/2012 & rated 86 points: This could be from anywhere. One dimensional fruit, although it's pretty good fruit. (822 views)
 Tasted by crux on 1/1/2012 & rated 90 points: Very light body for a Cab. Aromas of red fruit, Virginia tobacco, green peppercorns, heavy cream. Very delicate palate with some cherry preserves, more peppercorns and roses. (2128 views)
 Tasted by PSUSteve on 11/12/2011 & rated 88 points: Pop and pour. Rich and bold nose including tobacco and mint. Palate is a little more refined with good dark fruit. Nice QPR. (2146 views)
 Tasted by Number51 on 11/1/2011 & rated 89 points: Nice. Enough structure to last some years.
Initially, I picked up some tofu with miso-paste...
Good wine. (2053 views)
 Tasted by greenwalter on 10/22/2011 & rated 89 points: A real winner. Starts off with some typical cab dark fruit and sweetness, but then kicks in to a second level of spice. Very enjoyable. Well balanced. A great QPR. (1995 views)
 Tasted by JWHeyman on 10/16/2011: - Violet color with medium forming legs. It's somewhat balanced with a medium/full body. Polished texture with a long finish. (2079 views)
 Tasted by dstein12 on 10/3/2011 & rated 86 points: Drank over two days, no decant. Average at best. A bit hot on the back end and too much garrigue. If I had wanted CdR, I would have opened a bottle of that... (2190 views)
 Tasted by jpakma on 9/23/2011 & rated 87 points: Very interesting Cabernet. Dark red almost violet color; mineral with almost a multi-vitamin nose with berries and dark fruits; extremely clean palate, lively and fresh, berry and cassis, but a touch hot on the finish, medium finish.

Probably should have waited on this one, but was interested in tasting a cab aged in stainless vs. oak barrels. Purchased 2 bottles from WL on one of the free ship weekends this summer. Decent offering and a change up in typical cab presentation. 86-87pts.

Note from importer: Hand-harvested and all fruit is de-stemmed, natural fermentation takes place at low temperatures, punch downs and pump-overs take place regularly, wine is aged for 6 months to one year in stainless. (2277 views)
 Tasted by bechi on 9/15/2011 & rated 90 points: Dark purple and viscous in the glass with a full, rich, nose of grape Kool-Aid and stinky cheese. Lots of blue and some black fruit, with some lead pencil and spring earth notes. Firm tannins, but silky smooth and nicely juicy. I'm guessing that this will show well for 2-3 years to come. A real bargain to boot. (2146 views)
 Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine...

Professional 'Channels'
By Jeb Dunnuck
JebDunnuck.com, Delving into the Languedoc Roussillon, Issue #7 (3/28/2011)
(Château Fontanes Vin de Pays d'Oc les traverses de Fontanes) Login and sign up and see review text.
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of JebDunnuck.com. (manage subscription channels)

CellarTracker Wiki Articles (login to edit | view all articles)

Cabernet Sauvignon

Cabernet Sauvignon is probably the most famous red wine grape variety on Earth. It is rivaled in this regard only by its Bordeaux stablemate Merlot, and its opposite number in Burgundy, Pinot Noir. From its origins in Bordeaux, Cabernet has successfully spread to almost every winegrowing country in the world. It is now the key grape variety in many first-rate New World wine regions, most notably Napa Valley, Coonawarra and Maipo Valley. Wherever they come from, Cabernet Sauvignon wines always seem to demonstrate a handful of common character traits: deep color, good tannin structure, moderate acidity and aromas of blackcurrant, tomato leaf, dark spices and cedarwood.

Used as frequently in blends as in varietal wines, Cabernet Sauvignon has a large number of common blending partners. Apart from the obvious Merlot and Cabernet Franc, the most prevalent of these are Malbec, Petit Verdot and Carmenere (the ingredients of a classic Bordeaux Blend), Shiraz (in Australia's favorite blend) and in Spain and South America, a Cabernet – Tempranillo blend is now commonplace. Even the bold Tannat-based wines of Madiran are now generally softened with Cabernet Sauvignon

France

Vins de France (Office National Interprofessionnel des Vins ) | Pages Vins, Directory of French Winegrowers | French Wine (Wikipedia)

Wine Scholar Guild vintage ratings

2018 vintage: "marked by a wet spring, a superb summer and a good harvest"
2019 vintage reports
2021: "From a general standpoint, whether for white, rosé or red wines, 2021 is a year marked by quality in the Rhône Valley Vineyards. Structured, elegant, fresh and fruity will be the main keywords for this new vintage."
2022 harvest: idealwine.info | wine-searcher.com

Languedoc Roussillon

Inter Sud de France | Vins Languedoc-Roussillon

Wine-Searcher.com: http://www.wine-searcher.com/regions-languedoc-roussillon

Financial Times Article (June 19th 2010 Andrew Jefford):http://bit.ly/bLDytg

Financial Times Article (June 5 2010 Jancis Robinson): http://bit.ly/8ZerX2

David Schildknecht (7th June 2010) Languedoc-Roussillon Best Producers:http://bit.ly/do0LQa

Vin de Pays d'Oc

There are three tiers of Vin de Pays: regional, departmental and local.

There are six regional Vin de Pays, which cover large areas of France. The most voluminous contributor to this category of wines is Vin de Pays d'Oc, from the Languedoc-Roussillon area in Mediterranean France.

Each regional Vin de Pays is divided into several departmental Vins de Pays, of which there are about 50. The names are derived from the French departments in question and the limits exactly the same than the department's borders. For example, Vin de Pays du Gard is one of the Vins de Pays produced within Vins de Pays d'Oc using grapes from the Gard department .

The local, or zone-defined Vin de pays are numerous, and may take its name from some historical or geographical phenomenon, such as Vin de Pays des Marches de Bretagne or Vin de Pays des Coteaux de l'Ardeche, or even a more locally specific variant.] The boundaries of a zone may reflect a consistent terroir, rather than an administrative convenience, and could potentially in the long run achieve the status of an AOC.


 
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