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 Vintage2006 Label 1 of 726 
TypeRed
ProducerLe Vieux Donjon (web)
VarietyRed Rhone Blend
Designationn/a
Vineyardn/a
CountryFrance
RegionRhône
SubRegionSouthern Rhône
AppellationChâteauneuf-du-Pape
UPC Code(s)000004171034, 356812234567, 3568161234568, 3568162234567, 785255005795, 785255008116

Drinking Windows and Values
Drinking window: Drink between 2011 and 2023 (based on 56 user opinions)
Wine Market Journal quarterly auction price: See Vieux Donjon Chateauneuf du Pape on the Wine Market Journal.

Community Tasting History

Community Tasting Notes (average 91.5 pts. and median of 92 pts. in 270 notes) - hiding notes with no text

 Tasted by Rechrom on 1/21/2024 & rated 93 points: Very tight and a bit astringent on open. After an hour of double decant started to loosen and gain fruit notes and (weirdly) seemed to deepen in color. Classic palate with earth notes. Pleasant nose, not outstanding. Great with a provencal daube. (540 views)
 Tasted by Coastalnative on 12/25/2023 & rated 93 points: A real beauty. I've always liked the 2006 CdP vintage and this one was singing. I had a bottle of this wine back in 2010 (I believe) and today 14 years later it still very much reminded me of that wine. It has all the hallmarks of Vieux Donjon. Very pretty and pure. Persistent and a little earthy. Sous bois and dark dusty plum. Very nice! (134 views)
 Tasted by Livonietisr on 10/4/2023 & rated 93 points: Deep garnet color. Aromas of cherry, raspberry, licorice, smoke, earth. Wine is full bodied, creamy, medium acidity, silky tannins. Taste of blackberry, plum, spice. Medium long. (920 views)
 Tasted by wiscgrad on 7/16/2023 & rated 90 points: fruit thinned out vs previous bottle. would drink up (953 views)
 Tasted by oldwines on 7/7/2023 & rated 92 points: Double decanted by a friend and brought to a restaurant for dinner. Dark garnet color, reasonably well balanced and not over-ripe as some modern CDP’s can be. 14% ABV. Round and slightly creamy but mostly dark fruited and rich. Good length but not super long. Enjoyable but overshadowed by the 2008 Heitz Martha’s Vineyard Cab he also brought. (1297 views)
 Tasted by PSPatrick on 5/20/2023 & rated 91 points: The wine benefited from aeration in a medium-sized decanter. Medium to dark garnet colour, some sediment. Red and dark fruit, ripe strawberry, complex and intense garrigue notes, spices, liquorice, and intense stony minerality, with good, medium-level acidity, partly resolved tannin, and very good length. The wine is dense and tight, even feels a little restrained, and is complex and long. Should be good for another ten years. Probably my best bottle of this 2006 yet. (1271 views)
 Tasted by winemaker on 2/7/2023 & rated 94 points: In a great place. Lovely cherry, kirsch fruit. (1351 views)
 Tasted by Triforwine on 11/20/2022 & rated 95 points: Thank you gift from R.E. He knows his French wine, that's for sure. I saved for only a very short while in the cellar and then opened for a family meal that was very Thanksgiving like "pre-thanksgiving" where some were staying with Champagne but a couple of us went red. After a quick Coravin taste, decided it would benefit from a couple hours opened and brief decant after that. It did. Love southern rhone for this kind of mixed fare and this did not disappoint. Wonderful CDP aged and likely close to peak but likely to stay like this or even get better over then next decade. Just enough fruit, faint strawberry overtone, classic garrigue and spice. Long plush finish. Superb. (1459 views)
 Tasted by PSPatrick on 9/27/2022 & rated 91 points: Red and dark fruit, dried strawberry, plum, complex garrigue notes, spices, liquorice, and intense minerality, with good acidity, partly resolved tannin, and very good length. Benefits from moderate aeration. Mineral, structured, dense, complex, concentrated, and long. Starting to develop some old age sweetness. Finishes dry. Consistent on day two. Good! (1427 views)
 Tasted by wiscgrad on 7/18/2022 & rated 94 points: really enjoyed this older CDP. some secondary flavors coming out but still plenty of fruit. (1353 views)
 Tasted by ftsai71@gmail.com on 5/9/2022 & rated 94 points: We had this with a 2009 and a 2015. This was great. Smelled of cherry and leather. I get tobacco and leather a just a hint of fruit left. This was great but I would probably drink up. I don't think this will get much better. The 2009 was divine with many of the tobacco and earth notes but still a lot of fruit. (1466 views)
 Tasted by prism on 4/22/2022 & rated 92 points: Decanted for two hours. Followed a 2006 St. Prefért Auguste Favier. My last of nine bottles, and all have been varying degrees of very good to excellent. This was excellent, though a wood note is just starting to become prominent among the garrigue and fruit. As with most C9Ps, it soars with food. (1345 views)
 Tasted by SadEdjo on 2/19/2022 & rated 92 points: like-new cork. Dark scarlet; polished, bright red fruit, garrigue, cured sausage; good lift; nicely resolved tannins in a long finish; lots of life left (1348 views)
 Tasted by Outplaying on 1/16/2022: Compared to the Ferrand, this was not sweet. It came across tart actually, but in a good way. Pepper and spices, maybe a hint of brett, too. Starting to get light aged, earthy accents. It still seems a little young, so I won’t rush to drink my last bottle. I liked this. (1248 views)
 Tasted by eudora on 1/11/2022 & rated 95 points: My first post-COVID wine and it did not disappoint. Beautiful bouquet of black berries and fruits and cassis, and a bit of wet earth. Flavor was similar. Nicely balanced, worked seamlessly with mild grilled sausages. (1232 views)
 Tasted by kostaslonis on 12/31/2021: Random wines tasted during service (Oinoscent): Own bottle
The wine shows garnet color
In the nose, the wine shows very elegant profile, light earthy, spicy, ripe cherry, tomato paste, olive paste, pot pouri, smooth, slight warmth, a touch herbal bitterness (but not aggressive in any way)
In the palate, the wine shows warmth again, earth and spice, dried red fruit, currant, again herbal notes, med tannins and acidity, meidum finish. The wine is fantastic in the nose, needs time in the palate, as with time it gets fuller, the fruit gets riper and the heat goes away (1160 views)
 Tasted by PSPatrick on 12/5/2021 & rated 90 points: Fourth virtual CdP wine tasting (Skype): Wine 4 of 6: Dark garnet colour. Stinky Nose. Dark fruit, plum, intense herbal notes, lovage, spices, liquorice, leather, and mineral notes, with medium-level acidity, partly resolved, medium-grained tannin, and very good length. Medium- to full-bodied, with good concentration. Very persistent herbal and liquorice notes on the finish.

Similar experience to bottle I had half a year ago; the wine was dry and a little alcoholic at first, but found its balance and developed some old age sweetness with aeration. Pairs well with savoury meat dishes (in our case roasted lamb with rosemary and garlic). Equally good on day three. Drink now and over the next 5+years. (1507 views)
 Tasted by Livonietisr on 12/4/2021 & rated 92 points: Deep garnet color. Aromas of cherries, plums, tobacco, licorice, earth.
Medium+ body, medium acidity. Mature flavours with taste of red currants. Velvety tannins. Long. (1051 views)
 Tasted by MattB72 on 11/25/2021 & rated 94 points: Fantastic. At its peak, but so much going on. (875 views)
 Tasted by La Cave d'Argent on 6/10/2021 & rated 92 points: From a bottle purchased upon release and cellared under ideal conditions, this deep garnet, Grenache-dominant Châteauneuf still delivers dark bramble fruits that are accented with licorice, tobacco, bittersweet chocolate, Provençal herbs and loamy earth. Medium-bodied, fresh, softly tannic and with well-integrated alcohol (14%), it has good mid-palate density and finishes long. This has fleshed out beautifully. Comparably cellared bottles should show well over the next 2-3 years. Drink now-2024. (1877 views)
 Tasted by PSPatrick on 5/30/2021 & rated 91 points: First bottle of a 12-case bought at auction about two weeks ago (€27/bottle). Dark ruby colour, brickish towards the rim, some sediment. Raisiny fruit, kirsch, intense herbal/garrigue character, thyme, sage, spice, and liquorice, with medium-level acidity, fine tannin, and good length. The wine was fairly dry and a little alcoholic at first, and I admit that it concerned me, but it found its balance after about an hour in the decanter. Medium- to full, with good concentration. Some old age sweetness. Pairs well with savoury meat dishes. Drink now and over the next few years. (1810 views)
 Tasted by Wine Poor on 4/10/2021 & rated 92 points: Nice with braised lamb shanks. (1648 views)
 Tasted by prism on 2/21/2021 & rated 92 points: No notes; followed over three days. This delivers on the C9P promise of berries and garrigue; not too ripe, maturing beautifully, and no sign of falling off. Long finish; makes you want to keep on sipping. (1679 views)
 Tasted by whitmanlholt on 1/30/2021 & rated 92 points: Popped and poured. This is a solid red wine with tongue-staining concentration and very mild sediment toward the end. On the nose, I get black cherry, licorice, roast chestnuts, and seaweed. The mouth is moderately sweet, showing black and red raspberries and some slight heat. The finish is chewy and carries some lingering red fruit with a slight fig undertone. Overall, this is a very nice wine – it shows great purity of fruit and unabashed Grenache aspects. Good stuff. 92 points. (1832 views)
 Tasted by chitowncdpguy on 1/11/2021: Very ripe dark fruit with a lot of garrigue on the nose. Some mineral flavors on the palate, but it's mostly about the ripe dark fruit. Perhaps some hints of tar also?

Very good. (1548 views)
 Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine...

Professional 'Channels'
By Jeb Dunnuck
JebDunnuck.com, Up From The Cellar No. 21 & Misc. New Releases (5/22/2023)
(Le Vieux Donjon Chateauneuf Du Pape) Login and sign up and see review text.
By Richard Hemming, MW
JancisRobinson.com (9/9/2010)
(Le Vieux Donjon Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red) Subscribe to see review text.
By Jeb Dunnuck
JebDunnuck.com, A focus on Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Issue #5 (8/31/2010)
(Le Vieux Donjon Châteauneuf-du-Pape) Login and sign up and see review text.
By Jeb Dunnuck
JebDunnuck.com, Current releases from the South of France, Issue #1 (8/1/2009)
(Le Vieux Donjon Châteauneuf-du-Pape) Login and sign up and see review text.
By John Szabo, MS
WineAlign (7/7/2009)
(Le Vieux Donjon Châteauneuf Du Pape red) Subscribe to see review text.
By Jancis Robinson, MW
JancisRobinson.com (3/17/2009)
(Le Vieux Donjon Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red) Subscribe to see review text.
By David Lawrason
WineAlign (11/21/2008)
(Le Vieux Donjon Châteauneuf Du Pape red) Subscribe to see review text.
By Jeb Dunnuck
JebDunnuck.com, Bonus Reviews (7/26/2008)
(Le Vieux Donjon Châteauneuf-du-Pape) Login and sign up and see review text.
By Josh Raynolds
Vinous, January/February 2008, IWC Issue #136
(Le Vieux Donjon Chateauneuf du Pape) Subscribe to see review text.
By Richard Jennings
RJonWine.com (10/10/2008)
(Le Vieux Donjon Châteauneuf-du-Pape) Dark red violet color; smoky, herbal, very tart black fruit and tobacco nose; seems a little disjointed on the palate, with tobacco, very tart black fruit, herbs and high acidity; medium finish  89 points
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of JebDunnuck.com and JancisRobinson.com and WineAlign and Vinous and RJonWine.com. (manage subscription channels)

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

Le Vieux Donjon

Producer website - Read more about Le Vieux Donjon

U.S. Importer (Addt'l Info)

http://www.ultimatewineshop.com 9/2012
Le Vieux Donjon, as it exists today, was created in 1979 with the marriage of Lucien and Marie Jose Michel. Both Lucien and Marie Jose's parents owned vineyards in the region, and those holdings were combined to form Le Vieux Donjon. The domaine covers fourteen hectares of vineyards (all farmed organically), thirteen planted to red grapes and one planted to white. The Michel's holdings are primarily in the North and Northwest of the appellation, but they also have small plots in the Southwest and East. Their most important parcel is Pialons, and the grapes from the 2008 come from that parcel as well as those in Cabrieres, Bois de Boursan, Les Marines and Le Mourre de Gaude. The soils are mainly limestone and clay, and are studded with the famed galets roule, the round, rust-colored stones which were left behind after the retreat of the Alpine glaciers which once covered the region. Now that Lucien Michel has inched his way into retirement, his young daughter, Claire, who did an apprenticeship at Napa's Harlan Estate, is in full control of the winemaking (another example of a woman who has taken charge of a famous estate). Remington Norman in Rhone Renaissance says of Donjon, "The style of the wines is unashamedly, 'traditionelle' – vins de garde with plenty of backbone and muscle to them. However, these are no clumsy blockbusters, but wines with real definition and elegance underneath powerful exteriors…These are well-constituted wines with great depth and extract, which manage to retain finesse." The secret to the success of Le Vieux Donjon is really no secret at all. They have tremendously old vines (many in excess of 80 years of age) and they are experts at picking only once the grapes have achieved optimum ripeness.

Red Rhone Blend

Read about the different grapes used to produce red and white Rhone wines
On CellarTracker, Red Rhone Blend is the term for a wine consisting of two or more of the traditional 13 Southern Rhone grape varieties. Typically it's the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre or Cinsault grapes, but can also contain the Muscardin, Counoise, Clairette, Bourboulenc, Picpoul, Roussanne, Terret Noir, Picardan or Vaccarese grapes.

A 'food' wine. Lacking pretension and intended for local consumption with local cuisine. Lacks the 'high' notes on a Bordeaux, more earthy and sharper so often a better partner to meat dishes with a sauce.

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

Rhône

Guide to the wines, wineries and appellations in the Rhone Valley The Rhône Valley/Le Vins de la Vallée du Rhône (Comité Interprofession des vins AOC Côtes et vallée du Rhône)

### Wine Scholar Guild's Rhône valley vintage charts & ratings ###

Southern Rhône

Guide to the wines, wineries and appellations in the Southern Rhone Valley

Châteauneuf-du-Pape

Châteauneuf-du-Pape Appellation - Read more about Chateauneuf du Pape

Another site on this appellation
Vineyards on weinlagen-info

"As I have written many times in the past, the sweet spot for drinking Châteauneuf du Papes is usually the first 5-6 years after the vintage. Then they seem to go through an adolescent, awkward, and sometimes dormant stage, only to re-emerge around year 10-12, where the majority of wines are often fully mature. The best of them will continue to hold on to life (but rarely improving) beyond 15-20 years. It is only the exceptional Châteauneuf du Papes that will evolve for 20-25+ years, and those are indeed a rarity. However, things may be improving dramatically in terms of the longevity of Châteauneuf du Pape, although Grenache-dominated wines, the vast majority of wines produced in the appellation, are wines that do not have the polyphenol (extract and tannin) content of top Cabernet Sauvignons, Merlots, or Syrah-based wines. Nevertheless, the younger generation in Châteauneuf du Pape has taken seriously the farming in the vineyards. There are more organic and biodynamically run vineyards here than in any other appellation of France. The yields, which were already low, are even lower today (20-35 hectoliters per hectare), and of course, the proliferation of top luxury and/or old-vine cuvées gives a significant boost to the number of wines that will evolve past 25 or 30 years. The advantage of these wines is their broad window of drinkability." - Robert Parker

Vintage Chart 1978 to Today


 
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